


Star Wars Episode IX: The Rise of Skywalker (My Version)

by VikaFromTheMoon



Category: Star Wars Sequel Trilogy
Genre: Gen
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-08-04
Updated: 2020-07-16
Packaged: 2020-07-31 09:18:03
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 28
Words: 62,693
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20112757
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/VikaFromTheMoon/pseuds/VikaFromTheMoon
Summary: Rey remembers the day she and Kylo Ren/Ben Solo fought the Praetorian guards perfectly. Nevertheless, since the battle, something’s changed inside her. She is not the Rey she remembers. Her Force abilities are no longer a gift; they are a threat. Everybody, including Rey’s friends, fear her power. She must sacrifice everything she loves and give herself to the conflicted Supreme Leader if she is to change her fate. Nonetheless, something is hiding in the ashes of the galaxy - the Descendant of Evil - and it is up to Rey and Ben to stop this growing threat. As the galaxy crumbles, Rey will face danger like she has never faced before: including a wormhole, a supernova, and a Force-sensitive monster who swears allegiance to her. As she moves closer and closer to her supernova, her friends will try to save her, but at the end of the day, Rey and Kylo Ren are the only ones who can change the fate of the galaxy. They are the only ones who can truly take the name…,“The Rise of Skywalker.”





	1. From Scavenger to Teacher

**Author's Note:**

  * For [Anyone else who is a huge Star Wars fan and looking forward to Episode IX!](https://archiveofourown.org/gifts?recipient=Anyone+else+who+is+a+huge+Star+Wars+fan+and+looking+forward+to+Episode+IX%21).

> I know this is not how Episode IX is going to go, but if I wrote The Rise of Skywalker, I'd want the story to be something like this. This story is also based off some amazing fan theories I have read online, but you have to read the story in order to figure out which ones.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is Part 1 of the fanfic, which will cover the first six chapters. Like most written pieces, they will prepare the reader for a crazy journey in the Star Wars universe. Character development for Rey is especially important during these chapters. What happens to her will set the stage for the rest of the story.
> 
> I hope you enjoy!

She was frightened, but she did not know why. The torture in Snoke’s throne room and the Battle of Crait was six months ago. During that time, the First Order, under the leadership of Kylo Ren, brought complete turmoil to the galaxy. Nowhere was safe…not even the new Resistance base which hid in the lush, tropical jungles of a new planet – Supher (Su-fear). No longer was Rey a scavenger. Now, she was one of the best scouts in all of the Resistance, aside from Poe Dameron. She also was a teacher. During her scouting trips, she brought back Force-sensitive orphans, aliens, and people from destroyed and conquered planets. When she was on Ahch-To with Luke Skywalker, she took the ancient Jedi texts from the hollowed out tree that Luke said was the library of the Jedi Academy. In fact, here was Rey now.  
She just returned from Canto Bight on Cantonica, where Finn and Rose went when they were looking for a code breaker, and picked up a young boy who she felt was as Force-sensitive as her. His name was Temiri Blagg. He was a slave, but Rey hoped she would be able to give him a better life than the one he had in Canto Bight. Indeed, this was the boy Finn and Rose met in the stables who almost pulled the trigger, after thinking they were intruders. A cute little boy, Temiri had short brown hair, brown eyes, and tan skin. He wore a leather hat on his head as well as leather pants, an olive green shirt and a tan jacket that was a little too big for him.  
As he and Rey floated in outer space and made their way towards Supher, he annoyed the heck out of her.  
He kept on asking questions like, “Where are we going?” “Why did you take me instead of my friends?” “Who are you?” It got to the point that Chewbacca slapped his furry hands over his ears. This caused the _Millennium Falcon_ to spin out of control until Rey finally saved her.  
She peered over her shoulder to the boy and angrily asked him, “Will you be quiet? You’ve been talking nonstop since we left Canto Bight.”  
“But this is a huge adventure for me! I never thought I would be riding in the _Millennium Falcon_ with the famous Chewbacca and a very pretty girl!” Rey blushed when he said this. In her opinion, it was just a tiny bit weird for this ten-year-old boy to be hitting on a twenty-year-old girl. Temiri rushed to the back of her seat and gripped the top of it. “Now thinking about it,” he stated, “you never told me your name. You just landed in Canto Bight, told me that it’s time to go, and pulled me aboard.”  
“It’s Rey.” Rey quickly stated, “My name is Rey, and I took you because you are just as Force-sensitive as me.”  
“Really?”  
“Yes.” Rey replied with a nod, “In fact, I want you to attend my academy.”  
“Academy?”  
“A Jedi academy. I promised Master Luke that I would not fail him.”  
“Whoa! You knew Jedi Master Luke Skywalker?” Temiri’s jaw dropped to the ground, “So all the stories I read are true!”  
Rey chuckled – this was unusual for her since she was usually so serious – and she told the boy, “If you say so. It is time we live our own story and take out the First Order forever.”  
Just at the name, Temiri shivered and sank back down in his chair. “So, I went from slavery to slavery again?” he questioned.  
“I wouldn’t say slavery.” Rey shrugged and peered back to him, “It’s more like a recruitment of soldiers. Trust me on this, Temiri. I know what I’m doing.”  
As the _Falcon_ dipped down into Supher’s green and blue atmosphere, all of Temiri’s worries washed away. Wow! This planet was beautiful!  
It was chock full of beautiful beaches, sparkling water, and lush, green jungles. “This is where I’m living now?” he asked Rey, and she nodded,  
“Yes. Look straight ahead.” She pointed to the edge of one jungle where a landing pad jutted out from its point, “That there is the Resistance base.”  
“So cool!” Temiri leaped out of his seat and slapped his palms up against one of the _Falcon’s_ windows.  
He pressed his cheeks up against it and grinned a stupid grin.  
From where he sat, Chewie roared friendlily at Rey, and she chuckled, “Yes, Chewie. I’m going to enlist him into the academy today. I have to say that was quite a successful scouting trip. What do you think?” Chewie had to think about this for a moment, but when he finally made up his mind, he nodded with agreement.  
The _Falcon_ edged closer and closer to the landing pad, and Rey could barely see General Leia Organa standing at the edge of it with a few more Force-sensitive orphan children. They consisted of three boys and one girl – their names being Akinli, Akon, Beatrice, and shy Shudu. Rey and Chewie worked together to land the Falcon.  
While they did so, Leia gripped the children’s shoulders and told them, “Here is your new family member. Let us all give him a nice, warm welcome. That includes you, Akinli.”  
“Aw, man!” Akinli complained, but he complied. He was the oldest orphan in the bunch, so it was not surprising that he liked to play pranks on the younger children.  
Chewie and Rey landed the _Falcon_ perfectly. They scooped up hardly any dust and did not toss people to the other side of the planet, unlike Finn when he tried to fly.  
Rey shut off the engine and told Temiri, “Here we are. Welcome to paradise, Temiri.”  
“Awesome!” The excitement was almost too much for the broom boy to bare. He pulled on his boots and hurried outside, with Chewbacca on his heels.  
Rey stayed behind. She wanted a moment to herself. Just sitting in the _Millennium Falcon’s_ cockpit, she remembered Han Solo. The day Ben Solo/Kylo Ren murdered him still haunted her. She still felt the anger from that day. Han Solo was just like a father to her, and she lost him so early. There were times when she hated Kylo Ren for murdering him, but also times when she felt the pity that Kylo felt after he made his decision. She and Kylo Ren were so alike; it frightened her, but she had to let it go. Fear and anger were paths to the Dark side, and Rey most certainly did not want to turn to the Dark side! She liked being good, but at the same time she hated it. Who was she? Why did she get more pleasure out of dark things vs. light ones? What was it about Kylo Ren that made her feel so alive? The answer would come, but only when she least expected it.  
General Leia felt Rey’s hate, fear, and sadness, so she decided to meet her on the _Falcon’s_ ramp. The young woman’s three buns and tan robes danced in the warm, tropical breeze as she met eyes with the general.  
Leia pulled her into a hug and let her have her cry. “Han Solo is still here,” she whispered in her ear, “You just have to believe.”  
“I know.” Rey spoke as a tear ran down her cheek, “I just wish I knew how.”  
Temiri hurried over to the group of orphans and waved _hello_ to them,  
“Hello! I’m Temiri, and I’m from Canto Bight!”  
“Canto Bight?” Beatrice questioned him, “Isn’t that where the richest people in the galaxy resign?”  
“Is it really the paradise that I’ve heard it is?” Akon wanted to know.  
“Paradise?” Temiri scoffed, “I’d rather be here any day. That place is full of nothing but a bunch of selfish brutes, who think they’re too cool for school.”  
“If you don’t like school, then you shouldn’t be here,” said Beatrice, “General Leia and Master Rey are getting us ready to fight the First Order.”  
“And with fighting comes training,” said Akinli, “Not to worry, little brother.” He gave Temiri’s shoulder a pat, “We’ll teach you everything you need to know about this place.”  
In the meantime, Shudu cut himself off from the group. He was too shy to introduce himself. He slipped away from the landing pad and pushed his way through a band of overgrown ferns so he could reach the ocean.  
A few minutes later, Leia and Rey returned to the orphans.  
“Ah.” Rey said with a smile, “I see you guys have already met Temiri.”  
“We sure have, Master Rey!” Beatrice laughed, “And we’re ready to tell him everything he needs to know about his new life here on Supher!”  
“That’s wonderful,” spoke Leia, but then she noticed that she and Rey were one orphan short, “Wait. Where’s Shudu?”  
“He was here just a second ago.” Beatrice admitted. She, Temiri, Akinli, and Akon rotated their bodies and searched for him. That was when Rey felt his presence. The Force. It was guiding her.  
She turned her body in the direction of the ferns he disappeared in and said, “Let me go get him. I know where he is.”  
“Is it the Force?” Leia wanted to know.  
“Yes.” Rey spoke, “It’s guiding me. I’ll be right back.” With that, she stepped forward and made her way to the ferns.  
“But, Master Rey!” Temiri cried from behind, “What if something awful is over there?”  
“Trust me.” Rey repeated, “I know what I’m doing.” With those last words, she dove into the ferns and left a very concerned Temiri behind, as well as General Leia Organa and a small group of Force-sensitive orphan children.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> All rights reserved: Please do not plagiarize this story. I don’t want to have to turn on my bad side. Just FYI.


	2. What Rey Saw on the Island

Rey searched the overgrown forest for Shudu and called him,  
“Shudu!” No answer. She tried again, “Shudu!” Still no answer. Then Rey reached the beach. Her boots dug into the fluffy, white sand. Next to her was a line of water speeders that the Resistance used for scouting the island, as well as hunting and sightseeing. They were just like the speeders Rey used back on Jakku, but the main purpose of these speeders was to trek water. Not land and desert planets. The speeders, though, were not the only thing that grabbed Rey’s attention. There was Shudu. A short boy, he was about nine years old and had long, black hair as well as deep brown eyes. Over his torso, he wore a white, puffy-sleeved shirt, which he tucked into raggedy, old pants and brown boots (Strangely, in the world of _Star Wars_, nobody wore buttons).  
Shudu stood at the edge of the turquoise lagoon. It looked like he was meditating. Not only that, but on either side of him, rocks covered in green seaweed slowly lifted into the air and created a ring around his small body. The Force.  
This was fascinating. “Lifting rocks.” Rey murmured under her breath as she hid behind a small cluster of ferns and watched the boy. In his left hand, he held a tree branch, and he wielded it like a lightsaber. Rey rested her hand on her own lightsaber when she felt his determination to get the exercise right. Shudu practiced different thrusts, and he even tried a backflip. Unfortunately, that did not go exactly as planned, and he landed on his face in the sand. Splat! Instantly, though, he was back on his feet. With a determined look on his face, he held the blade up to his eye and hid behind it. For a good ten minutes, Rey did not bother him. Then she stepped onto the sand and rested her palm on a hanging palm tree. Clearing her throat, the young woman spoke just two words, “Hello, Shudu.”  
Instantly, Shudu lost concentration when he heard her. The ring of rocks surrounding him crashed into the sand, and he almost poked himself in the eye with his branch.  
In complete utter shock, he shouted, “Master Rey!” He almost caused an earthquake with the pure power in his voice.  
Rey nodded and came within reach of him, “I feel your determination. The way you lifted those rocks, Shudu, was very impressive. Nevertheless, I also felt something else. Fear. Did you not introduce yourself to Temiri?”  
“I couldn’t bring myself to, Master, for I am shy, but it’s great that the academy is continuing to grow. It’s just, I don’t feel cut out for this.”  
“Why not? You can talk to me. Tell me, Shudu.” Rey kneeled to the little boy and took his shoulder, “What’s bothering you?”  
“This feeling I have,” was Shudu’s answer, “It’s as if something is about to happen.”  
“The Force is trying to tell you something. Are you able to translate what it is?” Rey wanted to know.  
“No.” Shudu shook his head with disappointment, “And I don’t know if I ever will.” Here, he shivered and rubbed his arms, “My point is, you should maybe take a break from recruiting soldiers for your army.”  
Just before Rey could say anymore, she suddenly heard a roar from across the lagoon. ROAR!  
It came from a small island in the heart of it. “What’s that?” asked the young woman as a question mark popped up over her head, “Did you hear it too, Shudu?”  
“I did.” Shudu’s attention moved from Rey to the island she was looking at, “Do you think it’s a creature in pain? What if it needs help?”  
Narrowing her eyebrows, Rey clenched her fists and said in a stern voice, “Get yourself back to General Leia, kid.”  
“What about you?” For some reason, Shudu did not like where this was going.  
“I’m going to go investigate.” There it was. The words he dreaded to hear from this beautiful, young woman.  
He tried to go with her, “Now just wait a minute, Master!” and jumped in front of her with his arms out to his sides, “I heard it too! So, I think we should both check it out!”  
“Sorry, kiddo, but this is something I must do myself. Your safety is in my hands, and you’re not old enough to attend a potentially dangerous mission yet.”  
“But I am one of your best students!”  
“True, but still. Please, Shudu. How you can help me is by returning to your quarters with the other orphans. In fact, I’m sure General Leia has lunch for you.”  
“But…” However, Rey pushed by young Shudu and approached the line of water speeders. She paced back and forth behind them for a bit as she searched for the perfect one. There it was. The speeder she was looking at was as turquoise as the water and the perfect size for her. She jumped onto it and turned it on. The engine roared to life, sending a blast of smoke to spit right in Shudu’s face. He closed his eyes against it and coughed.  
When finally, he was able to see again, Rey was already gone. He could see the water the speeder kicked up as it made its way towards the mysterious island. He hoped that Rey knew what she was doing. Even though she told him to return to his quarters, he did not. Nah-hah. He decided to wait on the beach for her to return. He wondered if he could use the Force to see what she was seeing. Hmm. Well, if was worth a try. The young boy closed his eyes and tried to close himself off from the rest of the world. He tried to feel Rey, but it was a lot more difficult than he thought. He was just not skilled enough yet with the Force to succeed with such a difficult task. Just as the young Jedi told him, this was something she had to do herself.  
As the island drew closer and closer, Rey felt the aura of the creature whom roared. A sinister presence came from not only the aura but also the island itself. There definitely was something on it – something big. Just what was it? Strands of Rey’s brown hair whipped in her face, and she found it very difficult to blow it off to one side. Salt water sprayed in her face, and she tasted blood as she tightly bit her lip. Only a few minutes later, here came the roar. ROAR!  
This time, it sounded desperate – as if something had just injured it and it could not find help. “There is definitely something on that island.” Rey told herself, “And I’m going to find out what.”  
Eventually, the speeder hit the shallow water surrounding the island. The sudden bump almost threw Rey off its handlebars, but she caught herself and pushed it onto the sand. Turning it off, she dismounted her vehicle and peered forward to the overgrown jungle in front of her. Its interior was dark while its exterior was light. There was absolutely no light in the jungle. It was as if it forbade light. The sinister presence Rey felt; it was the Dark side calling out to her. This reminded her so much of the Mirror Cave back on Ahch-To when she saw the many reflections of herself. To this day, she still did not understand the point of all that. Rey stumbled into the cave to search for answers regarding her past, and she received none. Just the very thought of the prank enraged her. Rey was very short-tempered, which was one of her weaknesses when it came to the Dark and Light sides of the Force. She thought about what happened in the Mirror Cave. Who was she? A nobody…or was she? To admit, there were times when Rey felt that Ben Solo/Kylo Ren lied to her in Snoke’s throne room when he told her who her parents were. He just wanted to get into her head. After all, that was what Kylo Ren did best. Not Ben Solo, but Kylo Ren.  
Rey must have spaced out thinking about this because another roar from deep within the jungle caused her to jump, and it snapped her right out of her trance. She stared at the darkness, taking deep breaths, and pulled her lightsaber off her belt. She had to do this. Who knows, perhaps Kylo was in there, and he was waiting for her to meet him. What if all the answers Rey needed in life were in this jungle? The Dark side of the Force felt so natural to her, but she could not understand why. Inhaling one more time, the young Jedi tightened her grip on her lightsaber and stepped into the Mirror Cave Round #2.  
It was so quiet in here. Why did it feel like all of Supher had been lost to oblivion? There were absolutely no life forms in the jungle, excluding the space creature Rey was looking for. She maintained a tight grip on her lightsaber’s hilt and traveled deeper and deeper. The further she walked, the darker it was. Strangely, the Dark side energy did not hurt young Rey. She received no headaches and no aches and pains. To be honest, she actually felt at peace with herself – the most peace she has felt in all her twenty years of living. She felt like she was right where she belonged. But why? What was it with the Dark side of the Force when it came to Rey? It was her fear and anger, that’s what. She was angry at the Mirror Cave for pulling that nasty prank, but fearful that what it shared with her may actually be true. Rey only had herself in this fight. No one else. At this point, there was honestly no need for an army of Force-sensitive children, people, and aliens. Rey had to learn to trust herself. She had to stop putting her fear and anger on other peoples’ shoulders, including Leia, Finn, Poe, and Rose. Then and only then would the galaxy truly become nigh. However, the realization – the Mirror Cave’s message – had yet to strike Rey down.  
Many uneasy thoughts and feelings flushed through her body, but she continued her trek. It got to the point that the peace she felt was so great, she almost fell asleep on the sandy jungle floor. She did not know if this feeling was good or bad, though. All she knew was that the space creature’s aura was growing stronger, and then things went from zero to one-hundred very fast.  
A scaly arm with sharp claws on the end of its hand suddenly emerged from the shadows and dove straight for Rey! She had no time to think and dodge until one of the claws slashed her upper right arm! Yelling, she dropped her lightsaber and grabbed hold of the bleeding, burning wound. Her skin sizzled. She feared her whole arm was about to burn off, but it didn’t. However, Rey tripped over her own foot and fell flat on her face. She hit the ground with so much force; it knocked the breaths clean out of her. Her tummy ached, and she coughed as she tried to breathe correctly. At this point, her burned arm was already starting to swell. What on Supher just attacked her? That was when she saw it. The creature. The one she heard from the Resistance base beach.  
It had to be one of the scariest creatures she has ever seen! It even beat those awful Teedos back on Jakku! The creature stood at least forty-feet tall and had a huge, gaping mouth filled full of razor-sharp fangs. Its three sets of eyes were red with white pupils, and gray, brown, scaly skin covered it from head to toe. Not only did it have a few sets of arms and hands with sharp claws, it also had sets of tentacles that waved all over the place in the warm, tropical breeze. It stood on two strong, sturdy legs and roared at the girl in front of it.  
Rey broke down in sweat and asked herself, “Oh, God. What have I gotten myself into?”  
As quick as a flash, she pushed herself to her hands and knees and scooped up her lightsaber. Arm still sizzling from her burned flesh, she rose to her feet and looked the creature up and down.  
Rey tried to reason with it. “Why did you attack me?” she asked, “When I heard you from the lagoon, you sounded sad and injured. What do you want from me?” With her being Rey, she refused to run away from a fight she knew she could win. “I’m not scared of you,” she told the creature, “I have dealt with things far worse.” Like Kylo Ren. Currently, Rey did not believe there was another individual in the galaxy who was as heartless as Han Solo’s son, or as heartless as Supreme Leader Snoke, but she was wrong. So very wrong, and that is what this test was trying to get across to her.  
She ignited her blue lightsaber, buzz, and delivered the first strike of the battle – a forward thrust. She expected to chop off one of the creature’s arms or tentacles, but before the kyber crystals could sever any one of them, the creature ignited a lightsaber of its own (this one was red), and the two blades met. What the? Since when did this Kraken-like alien own a lightsaber? Once again, this was all part of Rey’s test. She tried another forward thrust, but then, from the corners of her eyes, she saw one of the creature’s tentacles creeping up on her, and it too held a lightsaber. What the heck? How many lightsabers did this thing have? What in the name of General Grievous was happening right now?  
Rey ducked under the approaching blade and rolled away from her enemy. “I’m trying to help you!” she shouted, but the creature refused to listen to her. It swiped its first lightsaber blade above Rey’s head, and it ended up in a tree. The top half of the tree fell and smashed down on its head. Stunned, the creature retreated a few steps back as it tried to recover from the blow. This allowed Rey to deliver another forward thrust. This one severed one of the creature’s tentacles, so now the two were even. Rey got in a hit and so did her enemy. She paced back and forth in front of him, with a furious look on her face, and aimed for another tentacle. Come on, she beat Kylo Ren on her first try, so surely, she could beat this creature on her first try, right? Why did she suddenly feel not as confident? It may have been because her arm was killing her, and she could barely move it now. She feared she would lose it if she did. Dang it! Now she knew how Kylo Ren felt that day when she overpowered him on Starkiller Base. Usually, the rumor went that the injured animal returned to its den, but not this girl. She refused to rest until she took the creature’s tentacles back home for dinner. That was a very gruesome thought, especially for Rey, but it felt right. She was giving in to her fear and anger again. Depending on who was giving her this test, she was either failing it or passing.  
Just before Rey’s lightsaber blade could take out another tentacle, the creature’s gaping mouth spat out smoke, poof, and hit her right in the face. This knocked the young woman back, and she lost her lightsaber. If things couldn’t get any stranger, when the smoke finally cleared, no longer was she in the jungle with the creature. She was back on the beach with her lightsaber sitting next to her. The creature teleported her out of danger, but why? Just a second ago, it wanted to beat Rey to a pulp, and then all of a sudden it saved her? Oh gosh, what on Supher was happening right now? Just like the Mirror Cave, Rey found no answers in the Dark side jungle, and this made her mad.  
She leaped to her feet and picked up her lightsaber, yelling into the darkness, “Coward! We were perfectly even, and then you retreated like a scared, little Padawan!” The creature did not answer her. What started off as a desperate cry for help turned into a scene of Rey yelling like a madman to the oblivion. Boy, did she have a story to tell General Leia, Finn, Poe, and Rose when she returned to the Resistance base.  
On her way over to a pool of water at the base of a palm tree, she murmured,  
“I hate Mondays,” to herself. With that, Rey fell to her knees behind the pool and cupped her hands. She scooped up some water and tried to drink it (she was so thirsty), but instantly, she spat it out. Ugh! Right! Salt water. Rey’s nose twitched, and she turned on a disgusted face. It almost looked humorous. She shook out her head and reached into the small bag she wore on her belt. From it, she pulled out a brown cloth and wrapped it around her burned arm. If Leia, Finn, Poe, and Rose found out she touched into the Dark side of the Force and got beat up by a Dark side creature, they would not be happy. The least they wanted was another Kylo Ren, or even worse, another Palpatine. Rey definitely was powerful enough for something like that to happen to her if she wasn’t careful. With clenched teeth, she tightened the cloth around her arm and reattached her lightsaber to her belt. Then, she stared at her reflection in the pool. All she saw in it was a scared, little girl who did not know her place in the galaxy. A girl who struggled between the Light and Dark sides of the Force. A girl who never knew her parents but felt a connection with Kylo Ren. What Rey saw on Dark Side Island would change everything, and when the time came, she would _not_ be the Rey _she_ remembered.


	3. Familiar Evil

_“The Emperor has awoken. His next target is you.”_ Emperor Palpatine’s eerie, crackly laugh startled Kylo Ren awake.  
He shot up in bed and spoke just one word, “No.” Han Solo’s son did not know which was worse – Hux wanting his position as Supreme Leader of the First Order, or learning that Palpatine reigned.  
General Hux paced back and forth, with his hands behind his back, in the bridge of the First Order’s newest Star Destroyer, _The Limpton_. He barked orders at his comrades, but only a few of them obeyed him. In Hux’s opinion, he thought he would make a much better Supreme Leader than that whiny Kylo Ren. Oh, how much he hated him! Since he declared himself the new Supreme Leader, Hux’s only goal was to get rid of him as fast as he could, but every time he went for the kill, the young Dark side user caught him.  
In fact, Hux right now was resting his finger on the trigger of his blaster, but he loosened his grip on it when behind him, the door opened and in came his worst enemy…Ben Solo. _“General Hux,”_ he spoke behind his newest mask which he finished just two days ago,_ “I’ve lost track of all the times you’ve tried to kill me. What number is this?”_  
“I wouldn’t do such a thing, Supreme Leader.” Hux spoke through gritted teeth, “The First Order’s never had a leader as reliable as you.” Oh, God. Just saying that out loud gave him an upset stomach.  
_“That’s more like it.”_ Ren pushed past him and rudely shoved the general’s shoulder. He headed towards one of _The Limpton’s_ windows and ordered, _“Set our course for Phonolukamy.”_  
“Phonolukamy?” Hux rubbed his shoulder as he tried to dissect Ren’s words, “I thought we were going to conquer the Resistance base on Supher.”  
_“Not while she’s there.”_  
“What?”  
_“You heard me. There’s been a change of plans.”_ Here, Ren stopped at the window he was interested in. Clenching his fists, he peered outside to space.  
Hux approached him from behind and asked, “Supreme Leader, do you not have a clue what we have to travel through in order to reach Phonolukamy? I think _The Limpton’s_ far too big to fit through it.”  
_“Are you questioning my orders, General?”_  
“Not at all, sir. I’m just trying to come up with a better plan.” Hux should have not said that. Before he knew it, Ren seized his neck with the Force and started to choke him.  
He screamed so loud that every First Order member in the bridge stopped what they were doing, _“THE GIRL IS GROWING STRONGER, AND YOU’RE ALL ACTING LIKE A BUNCH OF PANSIES!!!”_  
“I like pansies.” Hux choked out, “They’re my favorite flower.”  
_“SILENCE! I DIDN’T ASK FOR YOUR OPINION, GENERAL!”_ With those words, Ren chucked Hux across the room, and he smashed into the wall, _“I WON’T ASK YOU AGAIN! SET OUR COURSE FOR PHONOLUKAMY!”_  
“Yes, sir!” Quickly, the mechanics put Phonolukamy’s (Phone-o-luke-a-my) coordinates in their computers. Hux tried to catch his breaths on the floor, and while he did so, Ren stormed out of the bridge like a ferocious giant.  
He stomped down the hall of the starship and slipped into his throne room. Just standing here and staring at the throne, he remembered that day when he and Rey teamed up to defeat Snoke’s Praetorian Guards, after Ren himself murdered him. He felt so alive that day. To Ren, he felt like he and Rey were two peas in a pod, so it was understandable why he was so upset when she turned him down, after he told her to join him. Ren had to get her back. He sat down on his throne while he tried to come up with a plan. When he did this, he took off his mask to reveal the conflicted, scarred face of Ben Solo. Without the mask on, he felt weak. He wore it around his comrades for a reason. He didn’t want them to see how conflicted he was. The thought of Rey, though, strengthened the young Sith. However, it also caused his Light side energy to come bursting out of his system. Ben thought about the Emperor, the most feared man in the whole galaxy, and shivered when he remembered his ominous laugh from his dream. He did not understand how he could be back, but what if he was? Ben didn’t want another monster, like Emperor Palpatine, to rule the galaxy. That is why he had to capture Rey again. She communicated with the Dark side of the Force much better than he did. What if Rey herself took out Palpatine and became the new Empress of the galaxy? Then Ben could rule by her side. Would that balance the Force and finish exactly what Darth Vader started so many years earlier? It was destiny, or so Ben thought, that a Skywalker and a…OMG! He just realized something. His jaw dropped, and his lightsaber fell from his hand. It bounced off the steps of his throne and rolled to the heart of the room.  
He looked like a zombie when he went to retrieve it.  
A sparkle of light reflected in his dark eyes as he leaned down and picked up his weapon. “It can’t be,” Ben whispered to himself, and he studied the saber up and down, “The girl. I need the girl.” Then just like that, he scurried out of the throne room, with his mask back on his face, and returned to _The Limpton’s_ bridge.  
_“General Hux!”_ Ren shouted.  
“Ugh.” Hux groaned from where he stood, “Not again.” His head fell back, but he went ahead and faced his Supreme Leader. Forcing a smile, he asked through gritted teeth, “What can I do for you, Supreme Leader?”  
_“Prepare my ship,”_ was Ren’s answer, _“I have an errand to run.”_  
“Prepare your ship? What are you talking about? You can’t leave us all alone out here with no leader.”  
_“You won’t be alone. In my absence, I want you, General Hux, to be Supreme Leader.”_  
“Me?” It was extremely hard for Hux to not crack a smile when he heard the promotion, “You’re promoting me? Why? What can I do as Supreme Leader?”  
_“It’s what you’ve always wanted, isn’t it?”_ asked Ren, _“Don’t tell me you’ve tried to kill me numerous times in the past six months just for the heck of it. My mission will be quick, but until I get back, hold off on Phonolukamy and just sit on the damn throne.”_  
“Yes, sir!” Hux dipped his head and bowed to his superior, “We will prepare your ship.”  
Kylo Ren’s TIE Silencer zoomed through deep space. In the cockpit, the Dark side user once again took off his helmet. His mind was so full of questions and realizations, that he almost felt like his head was about to burst. Why Rey was so powerful, it all made sense now. Why did he not pick up on this earlier? The answer was just so simple, and he could have grasped it if he just paid more attention to her on Starkiller Base. If Ben’s plan had any chance with succeeding, he had to find Rey again. This was the only way to stop the Emperor from rising to power and repeating history. It was strange. Kylo Ren/Ben Solo, was trying to save the galaxy, not destroy it. This was very unusual for a Dark side user. Taking a deep breath, Kylo punched the button for lightspeed, and his eyes popped as it whooshed him away. He forgot what it felt like. This truly was _The Rise of Skywalker_. Perhaps there was some hope for the galaxy after all. Perhaps it did not need a Resistance army to take out the First Order. What if, the future of the galaxy rested in Rey’s and Ben’s hands instead? While that may be true, there was definitely something coming in between the two that wanted to mess up their mission – Emperor Palpatine himself.


	4. "Destiny is not a horse."

General Leia was fearful for Rey. Four hours later, and she still had yet to return with Shudu. She also felt a great disturbance in the Force. It was a familiar presence that haunted her during her youth when she was Rey’s age. She remembered feeling Luke’s pain when he called her from Cloud City, as well as the pain Emperor Palpatine unleashed on him from the Force lightning. Now, instead of Luke, she felt Rey’s pain. Something had happened. While Leia sat cringing on her chair and nervously chewing her nails, Akinli, Akon, Beatrice, and Temiri played on the academy’s playground behind her. They took turns driving a toy spaceship and pretended they were the Big Four themselves: Luke Skywalker, Leia Skywalker, Han Solo, and Chewbacca. Just watching them, Leia remembered her own childhood on Alderaan. That was when life was much simpler. Now here she was, a general who was trying to keep the Resistance from going extinct. Leia was growing older. Sooner or later, she would have to turn the position over to a strong youth. She did not know how much more of this she could take. If Leia lost Rey, what would become of her? Who else, aside from the young woman, could be an exceptionally decent Resistance leader?

Shudu still waited on the beach for Rey. He has literally been waiting here for a good four hours. However, he cracked a grin when he saw the familiar figure of a water speeder coming back from Dark Side Island. Rey. At the sight of Shudu waiting for her, she was so surprised that she screeched the vehicle to a halt in front of him. She stopped so abruptly that wham! Rey flew over the speeder’s handlebars.

Shudu watched wide-eyed as she whizzed through the air and crash-landed at his feet, yelling, “Oomph!” How embarrassing. Shudu burst out laughing and slapped his hands to his mouth.

Between giggles, he asked her, “Are you okay?”

“Shudu! Why are you still here?!” Rey pulled her aching body off the ground and brushed sand off herself.

She blushed so hard that her cheeks hurt. “Isn’t it obvious?” asked Shudu whom crossed his arms, “I wanted to make sure you got back safely.”

“That’s very considerate of you, but I told you to return to General Leia! I’m sure she’s worried sick!”

“Then why don’t we go back together? Rey, please. It is my duty to protect you.”

“Protect me?” Rey shuffled uncomfortably from her spot on the beach, “You do know that I’m eleven years older than you, right?”

“I do, but still. General Leia is worried about you. Since I am one of the academy’s best students, she thinks I should watch you continuously.”

“What?! She never told me that!”

“Well, now you know. So, are we going to return to base or no?”

Leia sighed with relief when two familiar forms emerged from the top of the hill in front of her and stepped onto the playground.

“Master Rey!” shouted Temiri, Beatrice, Akon, and Akinli. Instantly, they put their game on hold and ran to meet her.

Shudu hid behind Rey and shivered with fear as they reached for her one at a time. “Are you in one piece?” Akinli wanted to know.

“You were gone for so long!” sobbed Beatrice.

“Can I touch your lightsaber?” asked Akon.

“Pay them no attention, Master Rey.” Temiri said with a goofy smile on his face, “Instead, you should be paying attention to me.” Rey pushed the children off her and started in the direction of Leia. Except, they weren’t going to let her off that easily. Temiri dove onto his front and grabbed her ankle. When Rey tried to shake him off, he refused to let go.

Therefore, she dragged him to Leia with her. “Well, well.” Leia chuckled. With the help of her cane, she pushed herself to her feet and forced a smile, “The children are happy to see you.”

“Maybe a little too happy?” asked Rey whom lifted the foot Temiri still clung to.

“Oh, Rey. You need to learn to have a sense of humor. They were just worried about you. As was I.” Here, Leia’s eyes rolled over to Shudu who continued to hide behind the young woman, “Shudu! There you are! Thank goodness!” She pulled the shy nine-year-old away from Rey and pulled him into a hug, “Where were you?”

“On the beach. I refused to leave until Rey returned.”

“Shudu!” Rey blurted out, but it was too late.

Leia gave her a funny look and said, “I see. Well, let’s get you kids some dinner and show Temiri here his quarters. As for you, Rey, your friends are looking for you.”

“They are?” A shiver ran up Rey’s spine, “What do they want?”

“Oh, come on, dear!” laughed Leia, “They haven’t seen you for three days. They want to know how your mission went.”

“It went fine. I brought Temiri back. Isn’t it obvious?” Once again, Rey lifted the foot that Temiri clung to, “I apologize, General, but I just want to be left alone right now. Excuse me.” She dipped her head to Leia and pulled Temiri off her foot like duct tape, setting him down next to her. Then, without another word, she headed towards the Resistance base.

Behind, the children and Leia watched her leave.

After a moment of silence, Shudu peered up to Leia and asked, “Was it something I said?”

Rey entered the busy Resistance base and headed in the direction of her room.

She went no more than fifty steps when she suddenly heard, “Rey! There you are!” It was Finn, her first friend that she met on Jakku.

He jumped up from a game of Dejarik with Chewbacca and hurried to her. “Finn.” Rey spoke in a low voice, but she said no more because Finn pulled her into a tight hug.

“How the devil are you?” he asked with a huge smile on his face, “It feels like it’s been forever since we last saw each other!”

“Finn, I literally was gone for just three days.”

“Three days? More like a century!” Finn pulled the young woman into a second hug, and then a third.

That was when another familiar voice spoke up from off to the side, _“Master Rey! So good to see you again!”_ It was See-Threepio (C-3PO). He too came within reach of Rey, with Artoo-Deetoo (R2-D2) close on his heels, “I estimated that the odds of you returning safely was…”

“Tikki, tikki, tikki,” spoke another voice, “We don’t need to hear that again, Threepio. You’ve been telling us a hundred times a day.” Poe Dameron pushed 3PO off to the side and stood in front of the young woman, “Nice to see you again, Rey.”

“And you too, Poe.” Even though Rey told Leia she wanted to be left alone, just the thought of being surrounded by her friends again comforted her. Maybe it wasn’t so bad after all that they came to welcome her home.

After Poe came Rose Tico, Finn’s girlfriend.

She took his shoulder and rested her head on it, “I was wondering what all the commotion was about, and look who it is.”

“Is that supposed to be a compliment or a complaint?” Rey wanted to know with a touch of jealous anger in her voice.

“Whoa! Easy there, tiger!” Rose lifted her hands and stepped away from her, “You need to learn to take a joke.”

“She’s happy to see you too.” Finn told Rey.

Just as he said that, a furry bundle came between him and his friend, and two strong arms wrapped her in what looked like a blanket. “What’s all this, Chewie?” Rey asked the Wookie, “You went with me to Canto Bight.”

“True, but you know how huggable Wookies are,” chuckled Finn. The last one to greet Rey home was Bee-Bee-Ate (BB-8).

He rolled excitedly to the young woman, after Chewie let her go, and squealed as he circled her. “Bee-Bee-Ate!” Grinning, Rey kneeled to the droid and hugged him, “It’s so good to see you again!” BB-8 repeated the message through a confusing number of beeps and clicks.

“Tell us everything that happened!” spoke Finn ten minutes later. He, Rey, Poe, Chewbacca, and Rose sat at a circular table in the base’s lounge. They shared a platter of snacks and had some drinks to go along with them.

Rey’s answer was simple, simply because she wasn’t in the mood to talk right now, “All I did was wander into the casino and ask where I could find Temiri. The man pointed me to the stables, and there he was.”

“A man, huh?” Finn asked, “Was he cute?”

“Finn!”

“What? I want to know everything that happened!”

“I’m not interested in boys, thank you very much.” Rey spoke, “Right now, I have more pressing priorities. We may be living large here on Supher, but outside our protective borders, the First Order reigns. So, instead of asking me if the man I met was cute, why don’t you tell me our plan to take them out?”

“You’re the one who found the next Jedi Academy,” said Finn in a stern voice, “I think that is a question you must ask yourself.”

“What is there to ask?” As she said this, Rey pushed her chair out and stood up, “Finn, you, Poe, and Rose know your place in this galaxy, but me, I’m still searching.”

“And that’s nothing to be ashamed of.” Poe spoke as he took a sip from his drink, “Rey, we’ve talked to General Leia about this, and she agrees that we think you’ve taken this whole recruiting Force-sensitive people and aliens for a Resistance army, a little too far.”

“At the end of the day,” said Rose, “This is your fight. It’s not ours. You’re the only one who knows Kylo Ren best. Maybe you should go reason with him.”

“Reason with him? You’ve got to be joking!” Scoffing, Rey turned her back to her friends and crossed her arms, “I never want to see that monster again!” She lowered her voice with her next sentence, “Excuse me. I need some air.” Then just like that, she left her friends and headed back outside to Supher’s warm atmosphere.

Behind, Poe took a deep breath and exchanged glances with Finn and Rose,

“Well, that went well.”

“Oh dear, oh dear.” 3PO said with his head lowered. Chewie whined while R2 and BB-8 pressed up against his fur for comfort.

Rey walked under the setting, tropical sun to one of her favorite beaches, Palm Tree Beach. It was her go-to place after a stressful day at the academy, and she had to admit, the stress and fear she felt was killing her. Like any other beach on Supher, Palm Tree Beach had fluffy, white sand and turquoise water. It got its name from the forest of palm trees that inhabited it. Under the rays of the evening Sun, the young, conflicted Jedi pulled her hair out of its three buns and let it flop down over her shoulders. She sat down on a hanging palm tree, which overlooked the No’Ela Lagoon, and stared at the orange water.

She thought about what her friends told her in the base as well as what Shudu told her on the beach that housed Dark Side Island:

_“Leia thinks I should watch you continuously. She’s worried about you.” _

Then,

_“You’ve taken this whole recruiting Force-sensitive people and aliens for a Resistance army, a little too far. At the end of the day, this is your fight. It’s not ours.” _

“I don’t belong here.” Rey mumbled under her breath. A tear ran down her cheek, “I don’t belong anywhere.” She peered down to a pool of water under the palm tree she was sitting on and let the warm water wash over the toes of her boots. It wasn’t long until somebody appeared behind her, Leia, and she plopped a blanket down on the young woman’s shoulders. Rey felt her presence, but she said not a word and lowered her head. When she did this, Leia sat down next to her on the tree and leaned on her cane.

She looked out to the orange-tinged lagoon with her and admitted, “It’s beautiful.”

This was Rey’s response, “I hate it. I hate that it’s so peaceful.”

In a kind, gentle voice, Leia told her, “Rey, listen to me. Destiny is not a horse. You must learn to trust yourself.”

Rey cringed at the words. “Did Poe tell you what happened in the common room?”

“It was Finn, actually. He told me he was worried about you, and he wanted me to check on you.”

“I’m fine, Leia. Okay?” Lowering her head, Rey put her hands in her lap. She hoped Leia didn’t see the blood stain that was starting to appear on the cloth she wore around her wound, that she got from the creature.

It didn’t look like she did, but she did say,

“You’re not okay, Rey. I can feel it. Let me tell you a story. When I was your age and the Rebels gave me the plans for the Death Star, I knew I could get them to Artoo safe and sound. Vader did kidnap me after I did, but at the end of the day I met my brother, Han, and Chewbacca. We formed a bond so great, I can still feel its influence today. Back when I was young and impulsive, Luke felt the Light energy spewing from Vader. He was confident he could turn him away from the Dark side, and he did not give up until he did. Sure, he had some falls along the way, but none of that mattered in the end. What mattered was that he finally had his dad back. My point is, while I do agree that there needs to be a new Jedi Order, I do not think we need to use our students as a shield for you to hide behind. You need to come out of your shell, Rey, like Luke and I, and confront Ben again.”

“But look what happened last time. I tried, Leia. I really did.” Rey choked on her words, “And I failed.” Tears pooled from her hazel brown eyes and splashed into the pool under her feet. Her hair curled in the warm, tropical breeze, “I’m not Luke, Leia, and I’m not you.”

Leia shook her head, “Truer words were never spoken. No, you’re not, but you are _somebody_. You’re Rey, the most courageous, kindest, beautiful girl I have ever met, who has a talent with the Force like no other. I am proud to call you my friend.” Rey cried harder when she heard this. That literally was the kindest thing anyone has ever said to her her, and it didn’t end there. “My Ben needs you.” Leia continued, “You are the only one who can save him. He feels a connection when he’s with you. I know this because I feel it too. He is also my son. He wants to turn back to the Light side, but he can’t do it without you. Think about that. Okay, my dear?” The general gave Rey’s cheek a small kiss and hopped off the palm. On her way back to the Resistance base, she said one last thing to her, “Who knows? You may actually enjoy it.” Then just like that, she started back down Palm Tree Beach.

Rey did exactly what Leia told her to do. She thought about what she told her. Trust. Was that really all she needed in order to win this war? Instead of an army, was her academy really just creating a shield for her to hide behind? With so many thoughts swarming around inside her head, the young Jedi hopped off the hanging palm tree and came within reach of the lagoon’s edge. She hopped across a few rocks that rested in the shallow water, so she could get closer to the ocean.

Rey’s eyes fell upon the line where the reef met the ocean, but she froze from where she stood. She felt something unsettling. It was reminiscent to the feeling she had when she went to Dark Side Island earlier that day. She rested her hand on her lightsaber and continued to stare. Something moved in the lagoon. A shadow, and it came straight for the young woman. Nervous, Rey stepped back, but she tripped on one of the rocks. Her lightsaber flew from her hand as she crashed into the lagoon. Underwater, she came face to face…with the same creature she fought on Dark Side Island! Shadows covered its body (the symbolism was too strong), and it reached out with its claws. Rey, who stayed afloat by kicking her legs under her, also reached out. Her hand did not shake, nor did her body, for she embraced the Dark side of the Force perfectly.

Just before she could let the creature take her away, somebody yelled at her from surface,

“Rey!” and a figure dove into the water behind her. It was Finn. He wrapped his arms around her belly and pulled her out of the lagoon. The young woman coughed water out of her lungs as he lugged her onto the beach. She fell to her side in the sand and shivered as the creature continued to call out to her. With Finn was Leia. She passed him on her way back to the Resistance base, and Finn told her he wanted to check on Rey himself. Leia came with him, since he was a little shy to do it himself.

Finn fell to his knees in the sand next to his shivering friend and lifted her into his arms,

“Rey! Rey! Why did you do that?! You could’ve drowned!” She did not answer. Instead, she closed her eyes and slumped her head to the left. That was when Leia noticed the blood stain on the cloth around her upper right arm. Instantly, her entire face paled.

This was all she said, “She has had an encounter with the Beacerika.” “The Becer-what?!” Finn shouted.

“The Beacerika is a Force-sensitive life form that resides under the island of No’Ela.” Rose explained back in the Resistance base about thirty minutes later, “It snuffs out any Force-sensitive individuals who are struggling between the Light and Dark sides of the Force. I read about it during my youth.” She, Finn, Poe, Chewbacca, Leia, R2-D2, BB-8, C-3PO, and Rey were in a conference room. Rey sat in a chair with her friends pacing in front of her.

Finn immediately tried to pull the trigger, “Okay, so how do we beat it?”

“It’s not that simple, Finn.” Rose explained, “Ever since Rey’s returned from Snoke’s throne room, she’s been acting really strange.”

Rey forced a nervous smile and told her friends, “I’m fine, guys. It’s just been a long day for me.” Here, Leia piped up.

With the help of her cane, she approached the young woman’s right arm and pointed at her exposed wound, “You have had two encounters with the Beacerika in one day. That is not a good sign, my dear. You went to Dark Side Island, didn’t you? That’s why you were gone for four hours.”

“I went there because I heard a distressed creature.” Rey explained, “With me being me, I had to make sure it was okay.”

“The Beacerika tricked you!” An angry Leia lifted her cane and smacked the floor with it, “And you fell right for its trap! It pains me to say this, but your temptation to the Dark side has grown a lot worse. I know what I’m saying because I feel it!”

“I promised Master Skywalker I wasn’t going to fail him.” Rey choked out as fresh tears ran down her cheeks, “And I intend to still follow through with my promise. Weren’t you the one who just told me that ‘Destiny is not a horse, and I must trust myself?’”

“Don’t you dare backtalk me, young lady!” Leia snapped, “If you don’t clean up your act, I’m going to have to ask you to leave Supher.”

“Leave Supher?! But why?!” In a matter of seconds, Rey was on her feet and staring pleadingly into Leia’s eyes.

She took a deep breath and lowered her voice,

“You are very dangerous, Rey. So dangerous that if you turned to the Dark side, you could destroy everything. This raw strength you have – it exceeds Kylo Ren. You might be just as powerful as Darth Sidious. Now I know why Luke was so scared.”

“I don’t want to turn to the Dark side.” Rey sobbed, “Please, Leia. Don’t let me turn.”

“There’s nothing I can do about it, Rey. What you need to do is confront Kylo Ren.”

“But I don’t want to. Not after what happened in Snoke’s throne room.”

“Then I’m afraid we’ve lost all hope. You leave in the morning.”

“General!” Poe blurted out, but Leia went ahead and turned on her heel. She exited the room, leaving her old and new friends behind.

Heartbroken, Rey collapsed back onto her chair. She felt so alone. Tears fountained down her cheeks. She sobbed the hardest she has ever sobbed in her entire life.

Finn tried to talk to her, “Rey,” but Rey just said,

“Leave me alone, for I am a monster.” Still sobbing, she sank to the floor and grasped the chair’s legs.

Finn made a move towards her, but Rose stopped him, saying, “We need to give her space.” She gently took his arm and pulled him out of the conference room. The last one standing in the room was Poe. He glanced at Rey one last time before he also stepped out, and he closed the door behind him.


	5. Crash Landing in the Lagoon

Rey spent a majority of the night sitting on her bed and pondering her thoughts. How could things turn so awful in just one day? She was a ray of sunshine that morning on her way back from Canto Bight with Chewbacca, and now she felt like the most feared individual in all the galaxy. Was Leia seriously scared more of her than Kylo Ren? Then again, Luke was also very hesitant to train her.

He even said, “‘I’ve seen this raw strength only once before. In Ben Solo. It didn’t scare me then. It does now.’” What the? How powerful was Rey? She did not know the extent of her power, and after that argument she had with Leia, she did not want to know. If she really was as powerful as Darth Sidious (Emperor Palpatine), then maybe she _should_ leave Supher. She could find her own little planet in the deepest reaches of the Outer Rim and cut herself off from the rest of the galaxy. But would that be too much like Luke Skywalker, who had a very similar idea after he failed Kylo Ren?

The overwhelming, negative thoughts continued to ponder through Rey’s brain, even as she started to pack her bags. Leia told her to leave in the morning. However, that left another round of questions in her mind. If she left, who would take care of the academy? Who would train the next generation of Jedi? What would happen to Temiri, Shudu, Beatrice, Akon, Akinli, and all the other children, people, and aliens she searched the galaxy for? What if the academy fell, just like Luke’s? Then Rey _would_ fail him. Ugh! Why was all the pressure suddenly on _her_ shoulders? Yelling in frustration, the young woman smacked her bag off the counter, and it crashed into the floor. Don’t give in to your fear and anger, Rey. Don’t give into it. According to Master Yoda, fear and anger were paths to the Dark side.

Rey found it extremely difficult to not smash her room to pieces. She was just so angry right now. She was angry at Leia, but also angry with herself. Without even thinking, she ignited her lightsaber again, but before she could run it through her bed, a knock came from her door.

Finn’s voice rang out from the other side of it, “Rey? Please let me in.” Just at the sound of his voice, Rey calmed down and turned off her lightsaber.

She reattached it to her belt and turned her back to the door, saying, “I want to be alone,” but Finn went ahead and came in. Following close on his heels was BB-8 and R2-D2.

He came within reach of Rey and told her, “I need to talk to you.”

“What is there to talk about? I’m leaving. General Leia doesn’t want anything to do with me. I’m just as useless as I was back on Jakku.”

“Whoa! Whoa! Hold the phone!” Finn held up his hands to stop her. Dropping them, he brought one hand to his chin and clutched his elbow with the other one. “Am I seriously hearing this from _Rey_?” he asked in a sarcastic voice, “Wow. You’re in much worse shape than I thought.”

“Thanks.” Rey sighed, “That makes me feel so much better.” She fell onto her bed and placed her hands in her lap. For comfort, BB-8 and R2-D2 rubbed up against her legs.

On his way to her, Finn said in a gentle voice,

“You see, this is just it.” He plopped down next to Rey and also placed his hands in his laps, “Rey, I know you. You’re never so down on yourself. Don’t let Leia’s words scare you. You will _not_ turn to the Dark side. You are not as vulnerable as Kylo Ren, for you can embrace whatever negative emotion he throws at you. The only way how you’re going to turn to the Dark side is if there is someone out there who exceeds your power, and I highly doubt there is.”

“How can you be so sure?”

“Because when I worked for the First Order, I never found anyone who scared me. This includes Kylo Ren and Snoke. I just reasoned with Leia, and she admits that she overreacted a bit. Therefore, she is giving you another chance.”

“Really?!” Just as he said that, all of Rey’s worries washed away, like soap in a wash machine. Maybe she did not have to leave Supher after all! “Oh, thank you, Finn!” she cried out, and a grin stretched across her weary face, “Thank you!” She threw her arms around his neck and pulled him into a tight hug. Finn returned it.

It was nice to see Rey smiling again. “No problem,” he spoke in a low voice, “After all, friends never leave one another on the edge of a cliff.”

Just when the two let go, though, they heard something outside. The roar of a spaceship suddenly passed dangerously close over the base’s head. Finn and Rey jumped up from the bed and hurried to a window so they could see what exactly was going on. An A-Wing spaceship suddenly appeared in Supher’s warm atmosphere with its engines smoking and on fire. As it lost altitude under the planet’s two full moons, it flew over the No’Ela Lagoon for a good couple hundred yards before it crashed into the water. Keerraasshh! When it landed, water spewed into the sky like an erupting volcano.

Rey gestured at Finn with her head and shouted, “Come on!” As quick as a flash, she, he, R2, and BB-8 rushed out of her room and headed back outside.

The ship crashed just off Emarin Beach, which had lounge chairs, palm trees that hung over the lagoon, as well as another selection of water speeders. Across the lagoon, on the other side of the beach, was a line of volcanoes that flourished with green life. The crashed A-Wing rested in the shallow waters just off the beach, and standing next to it in the knee-deep water was a man. Strangely, he looked familiar. An older man, he had dark skin, a small brown afro, and a mustache just above his top lip. He wore a blue cape with a gold interior, a blue shirt, black pants, and shiny black shoes.

Finn and Rey merely stared as he lifted his foot and kicked the side of the A-Wing.

“Damn!” he spoke in an annoyed voice, “Not even two days in, and the engine blows. When I return to Phonolukamy, I am going to ask for a refund.” He waved smoke away from the extinguished fires, still not noticing the two youths staring at him, “At this point, my paycheck is completely useless!”

“Sir!” Finn finally called over the ocean breeze, “Are you all right?”

The man heard him and pulled his attention away from the A-Wing to his cape, “Uhh…” He grabbed hold of it and looked it up and down, “No worries! There’s not a scratch or tear on it!”

“That wasn’t what I meant!” Finn called in an annoyed voice, “You literally just crash-landed into the No’Ela Lagoon! We want to make sure you’re all right!”

The man ignored him and continued to inspect his cape, “This cape means everything to me. It used to be the _Millennium Falcon_, but then that Han Solo stole it from me.”

“Han Solo?” Finn asked. Suddenly, he gasped, for something just crossed his mind, “Wait a minute! Are you Lando Calrissian?”

“Seriously?” Lando asked, “Thirty-one years later, and you’ve still never heard of me? That is truly sad.” He wrapped his cape around his body and made his way through the lagoon so he could reach Rey and Finn. While Rey and BB-8 had no idea who he was, Finn and R2 did. Finn squealed a fanboy scream and reached for his lips, while R2 chirped excited chirps. At the sight of him, Lando cracked a grin, “Buddy!” The second he stepped onto the beach, he punched the top of R2’s head for his greeting, “It’s been a long time! How did you wind up here?”

“Oh, my gosh!” Finn squealed, “It is you! You’re _the_ Lando Calrissian!” Rey had no idea what was going on. Why did she know Han Solo from the stories but not Lando Calrissian?

She even asked Finn, “Am I supposed to know who he is?”

“Of course!” Lando argued, and he flipped one side of his cape off his shoulder, “How could the new generation forget my fine locks?” Rey couldn’t help but to give him a funny look. She had no idea if she liked this character or not.

Finn decided to help her out, “Lando Calrissian was a smuggler.”

“Is!” Lando corrected.

“Is.” Finn rolled his eyes but continued, “Anyway, he is Han Solo’s rival. They both fought over the _Millennium Falcon_ and made the Kessel Run in twelve parsecs.”

“It was more we had a bet.” Lando argued, “Oh, that Han Solo! I still remember that disgusting, smug look on his face when he won. To this day, it still gives me chills.” Right as he said this, he shivered. Then his eyes landed on Rey, “Oh,” and he blushed, “My goodness. Who are you, young lady?”

“I’m Rey,” she answered, “And this is BB-8.”

“And I’m your biggest fan!” Finn shouted. Instantly, he sprinted to Lando and bowed to him, “I’m Finn! It’s well beyond amazing to meet you, sir!” Lando, though, paid him no attention.

Instead, he pushed the young man off to the side and came within reach of Rey, “You look rather distressed, milady. How can I be of service to you?” With that, he picked up Rey’s hand and gave it a kiss.

She ripped it away, with a disgusted look on her face, and said, “Um. I-I’m twenty.”

“A lovely twenty-year-old, that is,” was Lando’s answer, and he again kissed her hand, “The last time I saw a beautiful lady much like you…I can still remember it to this day. Cloud City.”

“Oh, how sweet of you, Lando,” a sudden voice spoke from behind Lando, the youths, and droids. General Leia just appeared on the beach…right in time for the party.

“Leia!” was all Lando said when he saw her. He let Rey’s hand go and approached the General, “When was the last time I saw you? The Battle of Endor?”

Leia nodded, “Indeed. But what are you doing here?”

“Isn’t it obvious?” Lando wanted to know, “I’m searching the galaxy for beautiful women, and I have to say that Rey over there is a mighty fine specimen.”

“Ugh!” Rey almost gagged, “You’re sick!”

“Beautiful women, huh?” asked Leia with a smug look on her wrinkled face, “Then tell me. If you’re searching for beautiful women, how come the spaceship you crashed is from Phonolukamy?”

“Ah, now _that_ is a funny story.” Lando said with a sarcastic smile, but before he could tell it, Rey interrupted him,

“Is it the First Order? Have they struck again?”

“Let’s just say that one by one, Phonolukamy’s resources have started disappearing.”

Rey narrowed her eyebrows to an even sterner position and questioned, “Has the First Order set up a blockade near the wormhole?”

“Now, now, beautiful lady.” Lando said with a smug wave of his hand, “Let me tell you the story from the beginning.”

“I don’t need to hear the full story!” Rey snapped, “I swear, if you call me ‘beautiful lady’ one more time, I am going to smash that pretty boy face of yours!”

“Ooh, a fighting spirit. I like it.” Lando nodded and turned to Leia, asking, “Is she with you?” while gesturing at Rey.

“Unfortunately, yes.” Leia joked.

“Unfortunately?!” Uh oh. Rey was giving into her anger again. She clenched her fists and glared at the general, “What happened to always sticking up for me in situations like this, Leia?!”

“Rey, you really need to learn to take a joke. If you’re going to get through to Mr. Calrissian here, you have to fall right into his shoes.”

“We don’t need any troublemakers like him on Supher!” Rey snapped, “Supher is peaceful, and we don’t need alliances of the First Order ruining it!”

“Oh, so now she thinks I’m with the First Order?” Lando asked Leia, “A very flighty girl indeed. I wonder what gave her a crazy idea like that?”

This time, Rey glared so hard, you could barely see her eyes, “No one calls me crazy.”

Next to her, Finn tried to calm her down, “Rey,” and he pressed his hands up against her chest, “I think you should sit down for a few minutes.”

Rey, though, pushed him off. “No one calls me crazy,” she repeated, “I don’t care what your backstory is, Mr. Calrissian. Get out of here.”

“I would, young lady, but there’s a slight problem.” Lando shrugged and peered over his shoulder to the crashed A-Wing, “My A-Wing is in the No’Ela Lagoon.”

“Then I’ll get it out for you. It’ll be like lifting a giant rock.”

“Rey, stop.” Leia whispered to the young Jedi, “You’re giving in to the Dark Side again. The Beacerika will sense your anger. You need to calm down.”

“I’m sick of the human race.” Rey admitted, “I’m sick of everyone treating the First Order like they’re nothing! Kylo Ren is only growing stronger, and we don’t have the last Jedi here to help us!”

“Luke was not the last Jedi,” said Leia, “I thought that became clear to you during the Battle of Crait.”

Next to her, Lando gave her a nudge and asked, “Is she Force-sensitive?”

“Very,” was Leia’s response.

“Oh. No wonder she’s so flighty and beautiful.”

“All right! That’s it!” Rey’s hand shot out, and she used the Force to pick Lando up off the sand.

Freaking out, Finn tried to grab it, “Rey!” but it was too late. Rey chucked Lando like a rag doll, and he splashed into the lagoon! Splash! Both Leia’s and Finn’s jaw dropped. On the other hand, BB-8 and R2-D2 let out rounds of surprised beeps.

“If you’re not going to tell us the true details behind the blockade,” Rey shouted at the egocentric, old man who sat up in the lagoon soaking wet, “then I’m going to figure it out myself!”

“Rey, no!” Finn cried when he understood what she was saying, “You’re arm!” He tried to stop her, but Leia smacked her arm up against his chest, “Leave her be. She needs to do this. I was right. She’s become way too dangerous.”

“I don’t care. She’s my friend.” Finn pushed Leia off him and started after Rey who was now sprinting back down Emarin Beach, “And friends do not leave each other in the shadows.”

“You’re wrong.” Here, Leia swiped her cane under Finn’s legs and knocked him to the ground on his butt, “True friends watch out for each other and figure out what is best for the other friend. For Rey, the best thing she can do is confront Kylo Ren again, and if that means hacking into the Phonolukamy Wormhole Blockade, then so be it.”

“Uh, excuse me!” From where he sat in the lagoon, Lando Calrissian lifted his hands and waved them at the elder and youth, “A little help here!” He was surprised to find that nobody paid him any attention, even though he tried to look cool by wrapping himself in his cape again. They were too busy watching Rey, the last Jedi, run away.


	6. Rey Leaves Supher

“‘Destiny is not a horse. You must learn to trust yourself,’” was what Rey repeated to herself as she sprinted down Emarin Beach in the warm, nighttime atmosphere of Supher, “The natives of Phonolukamy need me.” However, the only way to reach the planet was by traveling through the Phonolukamy Wormhole. Not many ships successfully passed through it, so it was not surprising that most of Phonolukamy’s inhabitants combined farming with machinery.  
As Rey drew closer to the Resistance base, she took a few minutes to stop and practice some of her lightsaber moves, right at the water’s edge. She had to be well-prepared for whatever was waiting for her on the horizon, and the only way to do that was by practice. Perhaps that was why the Beacerika (Beach-er-e-ka) got a hit off on her so easily. With so much interstellar travel and teaching lately, Rey did not have a lot of time to practice on her own. Therefore, she must have been a little rusty when she fought the Beacerika earlier that day. She tried holding her saber in her right hand, but her arm still ached from its claws cutting into her skin. As a result of this, Rey had to primarily use her left hand during her training session, but that wasn’t all bad because the saber felt more comfortable in her left hand than her right. This was the case even before the Beacerika struck her. She practiced for ten minutes and then turned to face the ocean. Behind her, the palm trees waved in a small zephyr as she held the lightsaber up to her eye, much like Shudu earlier when he pretended a branch was one. Behind her, rocks and coconuts lifted into the air as she wrestled with the Force. Her eyes did not leave the lagoon. She felt it. The Beacerika. Once again, it was coming for her. Rey sensed her second battle with it was just around the corner, so she acted out a sideswipe with her saber to prepare. Waves slapped up against the toes of her boots as she waited. Then, when the time came, she got in ready position.  
A huge whirlpool exploded from the water and climbed like a beanstalk up towards Supher’s stratosphere. BOOM! Down below, Rey bent her knees and held her right arm behind her as she waited for the familiar ugly face to show itself. When it didn't, she made a move. The young Jedi clenched her teeth and stabbed at the continuing to spin whirlpool. The second the tip of the saber touched it; things became extra spicy. The whirlpool crested over and became a wave. When it did, it came at Rey from behind and snatched her straight from the beach! Within seconds, it was empty. There was no more Rey. Just a few coconuts and broken branches scattered about.  
Rey flew through an underwater tunnel and front-flipped continuously. She yelled the entire journey until SMACK! Suddenly, she was in an underground cave under the No’Ela Lagoon. The Beacerika dropped her right to the floor, causing her to land smack on her front. This may have made no sense, but that was what the Force was trying to get across to the young woman. If she had any chance for defeating Kylo Ren, she had to learn to control her emotions, and what better way to do that to place her in both a Light and Dark setting? That was exactly what the Beacerika did with her. The Beacerika itself…was her teacher.  
Rey, soaking wet, leaped to her feet and grabbed her lightsaber.  
“All right, show yourself!” she shouted at the creature, but it refused to fulfill her request. A good teacher is not all lecture. A good teacher is someone who believes that the student should experience something themselves.  
What the Beacerika did was pull Rey into Force visions that portrayed all sorts of emotions. The first one infuriated her. Rey stood in pouring rain (she could feel it just as well as she could feel her hair sticking to her face), and in front of her, with his mask on, was Kylo Ren. Wait a minute, this image looked familiar. That’s because she had this same one during her Force vision in Maz Kanata’s casino, when she first started her journey. Both Kylo Ren and Rey standing in pouring rain. Except, this time, the image of Kylo stabbing Han Solo replaced the image of the soldier he originally stabbed. Just witnessing this all over again, young Rey screamed in agony and anger. Tears streamed down her cheeks, and she lashed out at Kylo with her lightsaber. However, the second she ran him through, the image faded. Rey now found herself standing on a desert back in Jakku. What the heck? How did she go from pouring rain to a steamy desert in less than five seconds? What did Jakku have to do with Kylo Ren? Ask the Beacerika. It was the one testing her. Within the Force vision, forms of desert people rose from the dunes and danced around Rey like a bunch of ballerinas. They smiled at her. This was the Light side calling out to the young woman. Unlike the last image, she did not lash out. Instead, she rubbed tears from her eyes and danced with the dancers. A sand woman grabbed her hands and spun her in a circle. Was this Rey’s mother? Is that why she felt so happy around her? She had so many questions, but there was so little time.  
Then things changed again. The sand woman playfully let go of Rey’s hands and tossed her off to the side. Jakku’s desert image faded away to now reveal a much more sinister one. Rey now stood in a black and gray room, and layers and layers of clones, as well as images of Dark side users replaced the dancers. The clones reached their skeletal hands out to the girl, while the Dark side users also reached out, but their hands had flesh on them. That had to symbolize something, but what? Fear flashed across Rey’s face as she turned to face each eerie, ghost-like figure. Yelling in pain, she grasped her head as she tried to find the Light in the image, but it was difficult. The clones and Dark side users moved in closer to her, and they each held their hands out to the young woman. Then she saw it. The Light. Rey thought about the first time she met Finn and how quickly they became friends. Just when she did, two clones stepped aside, and a ball of white light appeared in between them. Rey approached it and picked it up. With the ball of light in her hands, she held it up to the sky. Right when she did, beams of light exploded from it and ran all of her enemies through in a domino-like effect. She did it! Even though the Dark side surrounded her like the oceans of Supher, she managed to find the Light, and she used it to take out those pesky clones and Siths. This meant that she could tune in to the Light side of the Force if she really tried. This was a huge stepping stone for Rey, and enough to satisfy the Beacerika’s request.  
Here she was now, once again flying through an underwater tunnel. Except this time, she was moving backwards instead of forward. The wave dropped her off back on Emarin Beach, in the bright moonlight, and slid back out to sea. All was quiet on the island of No’Ela. The Beacerika did not show his ugly face, because Rey managed to touch into the Light side of the Force during that test rather than the Dark, even though she did witness Han Solo’s death all over again. Just who was the Beacerika, though? How was it connected to Rey? Was it a good connection or a bad one? It was not up to the Beacerika to decide that. Rey had to decide for herself. After all, this was _her_ fight.  
When Rey came to after her insane Force visions, she gasped as her head shot up from the sand. Sand covered the whole right side of her body, as well as her face. Peering over her shoulder, she looked in the direction where she first saw the Beacerika before it took her away. Other than the gentle slapping of the waves on the beach, it was completely still. It was as if the test never happened, but Rey knew it did. Thanks to it, she knew what she had to do next. The last vision the Beacerika gave her, with the Dark side users and clones, represented Kylo Ren’s potential to turn back to the Light side. That’s why there was flesh on the Dark side users’ hands and not bones, unlike the clones. Rey pulled the ball of light away from the clones, the trap Kylo stood in, and used it to destroy everyone holding him captive. That was what she learned from that crazy last Force vision. Luke turned Vader back to the Light side because he knew he could, and he did not give up until he did. In Snoke’s throne room, Rey tried to turn Ben Solo, but failed. Since the failure, she has just been hiding out on this tropical planet and acting like she was the only one suffering from her emotions, when Kylo Ren was too. Just as Leia said, he needed her. Rey’s vacation was over. It was time she got out there and confronted Ben again. No matter the consequences, no matter the temptations, she had to try. As this thought found its way into her mind, she narrowed her eyebrows to an angry position and got up from the sand.  
The young Jedi marched down Emarin Beach, lightsaber in hand, and headed over to the Resistance base spaceport. Behind her, a huge wave of water splashed into a pool of salt water, and a slew of water spewed up behind her. She ignited her lightsaber…and ran.  
She ran, ran, and ran, with Leia’s words tingling in her mind, “‘Destiny is not a horse. You must learn to trust yourself,” and did not stop running until she reached the spaceport. It sat in a wide-open area that was filled full of tropical plants and fruits, and it also overlooked the No’Ela Lagoon. Turning off her lightsaber, Rey sprinted over to a new kind of ship. A mix of an X-Wing and A-Wing, it took the name _The Resistance Proud_. How appropriate was that for Rey? She climbed a ladder into the ship and lugged herself into the cockpit. Setting her lightsaber down next to her, she lowered _The Proud’s_ top and started it up. Its engines roared to life and did not burst into flames, unlike Lando’s A-Wing. Rey pressed the button that lifted the ship’s landing gear and peered forward to the cliff she was going to take off from.  
As she lifted into the sky, she thought about what she told Luke back on Ahch-To, “Kylo failed you. I won’t,” and then what Leia told her earlier back on Palm Tree Beach,

“My Ben needs you. You are the only one who can save him.”  
Once The _Proud_ was in the air, with a serious look on her face, Rey shot across the No’Ela Lagoon and acted out a sharp curve, which sent her flying straight up Supher’s atmosphere.  
Back in the spaceport, somebody saw her taking off – Temiri. His eyes did not leave the ascending _Proud_ until it disappeared in the sky. He felt what Rey felt – determination and newborn confidence – and hoped that one of these days, he would be just like her.  
The spaceship escaped Supher’s tropical atmosphere and now floated in space. In its cockpit, Rey looked back to the shrinking planet. She flew further and further away from it and then typed some coordinates into her computer – the coordinates to the Phonolukamy Wormhole. She had to be brave. Where she was going were some of the most dangerous territories in all the galaxy. With the help of their technology, the First Order could take advantage of the space life and objects that resigned there, such as a wormhole, and use them against the Resistance. In fact, these territories were so dangerous that they took the name the Suicide Territories.  
The name alone caused Rey to cringe, and she shivered when _Suicide Territories_ popped up as the location of the Phonolukamy Wormhole, “Well, that looks inviting.” Rey mumbled under her breath. She wished she had her friends to help her out, but no, no, no! She had to do this herself. The fate of the galaxy rested in hers and Kylo Ren’s hands. She’s hid out on Supher long enough. Now she had to sacrifice herself to both the Light and Dark sides of the Force. As she jumped into lightspeed, she heard something in her head. Laughter. Evil laughter. Palpatine was calling out to Rey.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is the end of Part 1. I hope you have enjoyed reading my version of The Rise of Skywalker so far. I never knew writing about the Star Wars universe was so enjoyable! The beginning of Part 2 and Chapter 7 will be coming soon.


	7. The Phonolukamy Ambush

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Welcome to Part 2 of my version of The Rise of Skywalker! I apologize that it took some time, but I had a slight state of writer's block. Now that I'm out of it, I am ready to write more Star Wars! The focus of this part is primarily Phonolukamy and the Phonolukamy Blockade. Deep in the core of the dystopian planet, an eerie, familiar evil is waiting.

“Now that’s what I call beautiful women!” Lando said the next morning. In the bright, tropical sunlight of Supher, he rested on a lounge chair with a fruity drink in his head. The beach he was on was Palm Tree Beach, everybody’s favorite beach. In front of him were a group of dancers who were practicing a traditional Supherian dance called The Suphera. It technically was the Star Wars version of hula dancing. Mixed in with the group of women were a couple of unique-looking aliens. Perhaps Lando should stay on Supher. He was away from everything here: The First Order, the Phonolukamy Blockade, and that pesky Kylo Ren.

Unfortunately, he wasn’t able to enjoy his vacation for long because Finn just had to ruin it.  
He rushed to Lando’s side and grabbed hold of the back of his chair, “Mr. Calrissian!”  
“Shh!” Lando held up his hand to quiet him, “I’m in the moment. These dancers love my company,” and he took another sip from his drink.  
Annoyed, Finn’s cheeks puffed out, “This is important,” but Lando continued to lounge. However, he lowered his drink when the young man spoke in his ear, “It’s about Rey.”  
Now that got Lando to his feet. “What about Rey?” he questioned.  
“Rey’s missing, and we’re not going to do anything about it?” Finn questioned Leia, who was teaching Temiri, Akinli, Akon, Beatrice, and Shudu how to use the Force to dodge blaster bolts in the academy’s front yard.  
This was her answer, “We don’t need to. She’s done what she has to do. Since she’s left, the Beacerika is no longer threatening the Resistance base.”  
“But where she’s going is the Suicide Territories!” Lando argued, “Someone has to make sure she gets through them safely!” Standing off to the side with Chewie, R2, BB-8, C-3PO, and Rose was Poe Dameron.  
Smirking, he crossed his arms and asked Lando, “Let me guess, that someone is you?”  
Lando glanced at him and answered, “I just think you should get help from someone who knows this galaxy inside and out. Commander please, I made the Kessel Run with Han Solo in twelve parsecs.”  
“And I’ve fought multiple battles in outer space.” Poe argued, “Unlike you, Mr. Calrissian, I’m not a smuggler. I’m a pilot.”  
Leia chuckled, but she did not take her eyes off her students, “A very impulsive pilot I have to say so myself. Temiri, chin up. Feel the Force around you.” Temiri tried to concentrate, but it was difficult.  
He pulled his helmet off his head, showing a mass of tangled hair, and told her, “I can’t, General. I’m worried about Master Rey.”  
“See?” Finn asked, “Even he agrees that we should go after her.”  
Without asking for Leia’s permission, Lando went ahead and came up with a plan, “I can get us past the blockade to the wormhole. After all, I did just come back from Phonolukamy myself.”  
“What were you doing there in the first place?” Finn wanted to know.  
“I’ll tell you on the _Falcon_. Now come.”  
“You’re not serious, are you?” Leia asked. She hoped she was wrong, but she knew she wasn’t. The Force told her so.  
Poe turned to her and said, “Sorry, Leia, but Rey is our friend. We can’t have her roaming around the Suicide Territories by herself. She didn’t even take BB-8 with her, so therefore, she is vulnerable.”  
As he said this, BB-8 rolled to his side and chirped with agreement. “You think Rey is vulnerable?” Leia questioned with a touch of anger in her voice, “She lifted those rocks during the Battle of Crait like they were nothing! Not to mention, she also threw Mr. Calrissian yesterday.”  
“And I’m still feeling it.” Lando grumbled. He shook out his hands and leaned from side to side.  
“We have to do this, Leia.” Finn pleaded, “Rey needs us. If she finds Kylo Ren, he is going to turn her to the Dark side.”  
“You don’t know that.”  
“And if she turns to the Dark side,” Rose added, totally ignoring her, “then the whole galaxy is in turmoil. We need to snap her out of it.”  
“Personally, General, I think this whole plan is preposterous.” 3PO stated.  
“It may be preposterous.” Finn said, “But it’s the right thing to do.” As he said this, Leia stared at him. It looked like she was thinking. Finn had the makings of a great leader one day.  
Through a round of loud roars, Chewie begged for her to let them go.  
Finally, she sighed, “Fine, but I hope you know what you’re getting yourselves into. If and when you find Rey you must leave her alone. Only watch her from a distance, for she can have no distractions if she if going to confront Kylo Ren.”  
“Yes!” Instantly, Temiri dropped his helmet to the ground and joined the group of friends, “I want to go too!”  
“Whoa! Whoa, shortstack!” Finn gently pushed the young boy away from the group, “This mission is way too dangerous for a little man like you.”  
“But I can’t just stay here! Rey is my friend too. I want to help.”  
The desperation in the young boy’s eyes almost caused Finn to comply, but he backed out, “Not today, Temiri. You are in the care of General Organa.” When he said this, Leia gently took Temiri’s arm, and she pulled him close to her. Shudu, Akon, Akinli, and Beatrice put their exercise on hold and also tried to volunteer, but they too were rejected. As Poe, Chewie, Rose, Finn, R2, and BB-8 started to make their way back to the base’s headquarters, Temiri watched them go. C-3PO tried to stay behind, but Finn was not having any of that. Therefore, he grabbed hold of the droid’s arm and pulled him away.  
Akinli, Akon, Beatrice, Shudu, Leia, and Temiri did not take their eyes off the friends until they one by one disappeared in the base. Upset and slightly angry, Temiri lowered his head.  
He felt Leia tighten her grip on him, most likely as an attempt to stop him from running off, but even as he stood there, he thought to himself, I am going to go with them, whether they like it or not.  
Rey was preparing to pull _The Resistance Proud_ out of lightspeed. She turned on the autopilot and scooted over to a chair at the back of the cockpit, which housed a console. Thinking hard, she pressed a button on the center of it.  
The second she did, blue holographic lasers scanned her hand. “Welcome, Rey,” a sudden robotic voice spoke, and from there, holographic stars exploded from the console and surrounded her. Within the hologram was a map of the Suicide Territories.  
Rey examined it and rubbed her chin, saying, “So I’m here, and I want to be here.” She slid her hand across her current coordinates and stopped at an image of a huge wormhole, the Phonolukamy Wormhole.  
It flashed a few times, and then the mechanical voice said, “I am detecting massive life forms. It looks like a blockade’s conquered your destination.”  
“So, it’s true.” Rey told herself, “The First Order has set up a blockade to prevent people from entering and leaving the wormhole. Why Phonolukamy, though? What is so important that the First Order had to disturb a dystopian planet?” Right as she said this, she felt something. An aura, but this was not a new aura. It felt familiar. “Ben,” the young woman spoke under her breath. Then just like that, she dropped out of lightspeed. The force at which she did threw her into her chair. Clenching her teeth, Rey grabbed the back of it and lugged herself to her feet. She leaped back into the pilot seat and turned off the autopilot. When she did, a TIE Silencer appeared behind her, followed closely by a group of TIE Fighters. In the cockpit of the Silencer, Kylo Ren/Ben Solo focused his attention on _The Resistance Proud_.  
He sent a communication to the rest of the TIEs behind him and announced in a proud voice, “We’ve got her.” The First Order just pulled Rey into an unexpected ambush.  
Before boarding the _Millennium Falcon_, Finn slipped into Rey’s room and picked up the ancient Jedi texts she took from Ahch-To that she left on her desk. If he had any hope with saving her, he had to read up on the Jedi religion. There were five books in the bundle: the Aionomica, Rammahgon, Karobela, Reacher, and the Xiteska.  
Finn stuffed the books into a satchel he wore over his shoulder and met up with Rose in the hallway. “You know,” she joked, “The last time I saw you carrying a satchel, I stunned you.”  
“You’re not going to do that again, right?”  
“No because this time, it is okay to run away.” Rose cracked a small smile and pecked Finn’s cheek. He blushed when she did. He needed that kiss.  
It calmed him down. “Are we ready?” he asked his girlfriend.  
She nodded, “We are.”  
Rey saw the approaching TIE Silencer and TIE Fighters out the corners of her eyes, and her jaw dropped in pure shock,  
“I’m so dumb. I fell right for their trap.”  
“Approaching the Phonolukamy Blockade,” said the mechanical voice from the console she was just at. Rey thought about jumping back into lightspeed and getting the heck out of there, but then her mind returned to the reason why she left Supher in the first place. She had to win Phonolukamy back from the First Order. Two TIEs came at her from either side, but she thought fast. She waited until the last second, and then she punched the accelerator. _The Resistance Proud_ shot straight up, and this caused the TIEs to crash head-on with each other. KABOOM! A huge explosion lit up the space surrounding the spaceships.  
At the sight of this, Kylo Ren groaned in frustration, and he punched his own flying console. “We don’t want to kill her,” he communicated to the surviving TIEs, “We just need to disable her ship. That will buy me time to climb aboard and capture her.”  
“Supreme Leader!” one of his stormtroopers communicated back, “She’s heading for the wormhole!”  
“Then stop her!” Kylo shouted, “We can’t let her reach Phonolukamy!” Just as he said that, the ship the stormtrooper just spoke to him from exploded, KABOOM, just like the two before it.  
Rey managed to strike it with one of _The Proud’s_ guns. “Whoa!” she shouted, “This is crazy! I can’t believe I just did that!” She had to admit, just like what Leia told her on Supher, this was almost enjoyable. Ren, though, was not having fun at all.  
If Rey took out another one of his TIEs, he was going to lose it. “It’s time to play dirty,” he spoke, and he punched the button that activated his own guns, “I’ll show her the true power of the Suicide Territories.”  
Rose and Finn were the last ones to board the _Millennium Falcon_ in Supher’s spaceport.  
They met up with Chewie, Lando, R2, BB-8, C-3PO, and Poe in the cockpit. “What took you so long?” Lando asked from the pilot seat. Finn answered his question.  
He set his satchel down next to his chair and plopped down in it, “There are so many twists and turns in the Resistance base. Rose and I lost our way.” Of course.  
Poe rolled his eyes and approached Lando from behind, asking, “So, what’s the plan?”  
“The plan, Commander?” Lando questioned, “I’ll tell you the plan. We’re going to gun it to the wormhole.”  
“That’s our plan?!” Poe raised his voice, “That has to be the worst plan ever! Have you ever heard of stealth? Why do you think I was able to slip by the First Order’s guards during the bombing raid? You know what, I don’t think you’re cut out to be the pilot.”  
He tried to push Lando out of the pilot seat, but Chewie roared at him. “Oh my!” 3PO shouted, “I don’t think Chewie wants you to be the pilot, Mr. Dameron.”  
“Why not? I think I’d make a much better pilot than this lunatic.” That response made Lando mad.  
He punched the _Falcon’s_ steering console and jumped up from his seat. “Is that a challenge, Commander?” he asked Poe in an annoyed voice.  
“Oh, for the love of…!” Finn slapped his hands to his temples, “Can we save the honeymoon for later? I thought we were going after Rey.”  
“Sit down, boy.” Lando told Poe through gritted teeth, and he pushed him into a seat. “I’ll show you how the professionals fly.”  
Ren led Rey on a chase through a meteoroid belt. He shot at the rocks, and bits and pieces of them headed for her ship. She ducked under one of the meteoroids and opened fired, but she hit nothing. Kylo Ren had vanished into midair. Sweating and out of breath, the young Jedi brought _The Proud_ to a stop and searched the area. Her senses tingled as the TIEs gained up on her, but there was still no sign of the conflicted Supreme Leader.  
She heard a voice in her head, _“Kill them, Rey. Kill them all,”_ and without thinking, Rey gave herself to the voice. To the Dark side. Her eyebrows narrowed, and she yelled as she suddenly went on a rampage with the gun. BOOM! BOOM! BOOM! Each blast took out one or more TIEs. BOOM! BOOM! BOOM! It went on and on.  
Ren, who was hiding behind a huge meteoroid, felt what she was feeling, and he could see everything that was going on through a Force vision, “Beautiful.” However, as the seconds progressed, Rey grew even more violent. Before long, she was shooting at everything that moved and taking out every single ship that belonged to the First Order, except Kylo Ren. This made Ben uncomfortable. He knew he was a violent person, but what Rey was doing right now exceeded his violence. He kept on hearing the screams and dying calls of help from his comrades. A searing pain engulfed his head, and he tried to shake it off.  
The voice Rey heard kept on telling her, _“Kill them all. Show them your power,”_ and she kept on obeying it.  
Eventually, Ben could take no more, and he yelled,  
“Stop!” through the Force. Rey heard him, but for the first time ever, she felt more fear in Ben’s heart than anger and sorrow. At his request, she stopped, and her eyes widened when she saw all the destruction in the meteoroid belt. Wait a minute, she did not just do that. Right? Her lightsaber trembled on her belt.  
It too feared her power. “What did I just do?” the young woman frightfully asked herself.  
“Stop!” Ben shouted again, and just like that, he emerged from behind the meteoroid he was hiding behind. It almost looked like he was about to cry. During all the encounters he has had with Rey, he has never felt this much fear around the Force-sensitive young woman.  
Fingers still on the gun’s trigger, Rey slowly turned her head, and her hazel brown eyes landed on the Silencer, which floated directly in front of her, “Ben.” BOOM! The second she spoke that, a huge meteoroid crept up on her from behind, and it smashed into _The Proud’s_ tail! Yelling, Rey fell forward in her chair and smashed into the flying console. The second she did, her world went black, and her injured arm started to bleed again. This couldn’t have been a coincidence. Somebody was punishing her, and it was not Kylo Ren.  
The whole interior of _The Proud_ flashed red, and the mechanical voice shouted, “Danger! Danger! All systems are down! The ship is about to blow!”  
No!” Kylo Ren shouted from where he hovered, “Stop! She doesn’t deserve this!” and just like that, he punched the accelerator of his TIE Silencer.  
Whoosh! The _Millennium Falcon_ caused turquoise water in the No’Ela Lagoon to shoot up as it whisked across it. Just flying the ship again, Lando was one happy guy. He laughed, Chewie as well, and they worked together to steer the _Falcon_ towards space. In the cockpit, Rose grabbed Finn’s arm for comfort.  
Her eyes widened to an exceptionally humorous size – she was so surprised by how fast the _Falcon_ flew. “Now this is what I call flying! Whoo!” Poe shouted. He lifted his hands high over his head and glanced at Finn who had his back glued to the back of his seat, “Don’t you agree, Finn?”  
“No!” Finn shouted, “I hate flying!”  
General Leia Organa, after finishing her lessons for the morning, watched the _Falcon’s_ ascent into the atmosphere from Rhilei Beach, the beach that housed Dark Side Island.  
“Impulsive youths,” she mumbled under her breath as she used her cane to kick up sand and seaweed.  
That was when she felt it. Another disturbance in the Force. It was so powerful, the general sank to her knees in the sand and pressed her palm up against her chest. Rey. Kylo Ren. She felt them. Something just happened, something horrifying. No longer did Leia feel Rey’s aura. It was as quiet as the area she was in. Ben’s aura, though, was extremely strong. It was almost as if he was there with her. She felt his light.  
Eyes rolling up to the blue atmosphere, Leia tightened her grip on her cane and begged, “Ben, please. Save her,” just as the _Millennium Falcon_ disappeared in the clouds of the new Resistance base…the tropical planet known as Supher.


	8. Monster from the Deep

Poe found it extremely difficult to not shove Lando out of the pilot seat and take the wheel himself. He’d love to fly the _Millennium Falcon_. That would be a huge step up from the X-Wings he usually flew.  
In fact, he even told Lando, “Say, Lando. Whenever you get tired, I’m open.”  
“Thank you, but I’m perfectly fine.” Lando spoke in a sarcastic voice, “Chewie and I are the only ones meant to fly the _Falcon_.”  
“You’re selfish.” Poe mumbled, but before things could get too dicey, Finn piped up,  
“Gentlemen, please. Now that we are in the _Falcon_, Lando could you please explain why you went to Phonolukamy in the first place?” He did this to prevent a war between the veteran pilot and younger pilot. He has never seen Poe so jealous before.  
From where he sat, Lando pulled his attention away from the younger man and asked, “Oh, we are, aren’t we? All right then.” Here, he and Chewie exchanged quick glances at one another. Then Lando explained, “There’s this gangster, ya know? Like Jabba the Hutt? I had to meet with him about something.”  
“What about?” Finn was very curious now.  
Unfortunately, Lando was not eager to tell the whole story, “That’s between Yamo and I, kid.” Just that response alone told Finn this veteran pilot was hiding something. He must have smuggled something into Phonolukamy, but what? Finn had to know.  
He opened his mouth to speak, but before he could, a young voice suddenly spoke up from behind the group,  
“Wow! I never noticed how big the _Falcon_ is!” At the same time Rose’s, Poe’s, Finn’s, and Lando’s eyes widened. Hold on. They recognized that voice.  
Within seconds, 3PO said, “I believe we have a young stowaway on board.” When the message found its way into everybody’s brains, they all turned to see Temiri standing in the cockpit’s doorway. Rose (who was the only one standing) – her jaw dropped, and she clenched her fists. She examined the boy up and down to make sure she was not seeing things. She wasn’t. Indeed, there was Temiri. He chuckled nervously and lifted his hand.  
With a small flick of his wrist, he said, “Hello.”  
“Stop!” The desperation in Kylo’s voice was real. He knew who summoned the meteoroid to disable Rey’s ship. “Punish me, but not her!” he begged, “I promise I will do better!” and then Rey woke up in the cockpit. Ren’s voice was her alarm clock. Though slightly dazed, she was okay, but then she saw the danger she was in. Fear flashed across her face when she did. The meteoroid’s impact had knocked her completely off course._The Proud_ spun crazily in space. It looked like a planet knocked off its axis. It also became slightly harder to breathe. Not only that, but the disabled ship was heading straight for a tunnel in space – The Phonolukamy Wormhole.  
Rey felt the gravity snatch her. Petrified, she slapped her palms up against the cockpit’s window shield and stared desperately at Ren’s Silencer. Since it was so powerful, almost no disabled ships made it through the wormhole. If you were going to travel through it, the ship had to be in one piece. It also could not be too big or too small. That is why Hux was concerned about _The Limpton’s_ size.  
The broken voice of _The Proud’s_ robot spoke up, _“Bzzt. Now entering…bzzt…the Phono…bzzt…lukamy Wormhole…bzzt.”_  
“Help!” Rey shouted, “I can’t travel through it in this condition!” Ren tried to pull his Silencer next to her, but the gravity pulled him back. What he and Rey were looking at was a camouflaged space tunnel, in which a white light shone deep within it. Behind the two was the blockade, which consisted of numerous Star Destroyers and other ships.  
In _The Proud’s_ cockpit, the console sparked.  
_“Abandon ship! Abandon ship!”_ yelled the mechanical voice, _“Extreme danger! Extreme danger!”_  
“Help!” Rey repeated as the wormhole drew closer and closer. She frantically looked around for an oxygen mask.  
Eventually, she found one, and she put it on. Right when she did, _The Proud_ shook like a terrified baby, and the mechanical voice announced, _“Evacuate! Evacuate!_ _The Proud_ _will never make it through the wormhole!”_ As it said this, Rey held onto the back of her chair and flipped through the book of knowledge in her head. She tried to think of a way how she could escape, but nothing came to her at first. She could try to jump through the hatch, but she would never survive the vacuum of space if she did. The wormhole would spaghettify her.  
She almost accepted her fate of death, but then she heard something.  
A voice, but this voice did not belong to Kylo, nor did it belong to the evil voice who told her to slaughter all those TIE Fighters. _“Rey.”_ Luke Skywalker was calm. Even in death, he was still with Rey. _“‘We’ve passed down all we know.’”_ Rey took deep breaths as she listened to the wise, deceased Jedi, _“‘A thousand generations live in you.’”_ His last few sentences were what the young Jedi took into account, _“‘But this is your fight.’ Use the Force. It will guide you.”_ He was right. Rey had to trust the Force. She was not strong with it just for the heck of it.  
As she pondered what Luke told her, she next heard Kylo Ren, “Rey, you’ve got to tell me your plan. You’re running out of time.” Then it hit her. Rey had to escape through the escape pod. Escape pods could survive anything, even the Phonolukamy Wormhole. She let the Force calm her down.  
Relaxing, she answered Kylo Ren with a confident voice, “I have to escape through the escape pod.”  
“The escape pod? Are you sure?”  
“Yes. Escape pods can survive anything. The only downside is that it will take me in the direction where gravity is flowing the strongest, which is through the wormhole. If I die, so be it. At least I died trusting the Force.”  
“But, Rey. I’m nervous that the wormhole will spaghettify you.”  
“If it does, it does. At least I tried. Ben, there is a reason why these territories are called the Suicide Territories.” With that, the young woman picked up her lightsaber and clutched it tightly in her hand. She let go of her chair and headed in the direction of _The Proud’s_ escape pod, a plan in her mind and a confident thought that it was going to succeed. She had the Force, and she had herself. It was time she put her skills to the test.  
The escape pod Rey climbed into was small with a single chair, a food and water compartment, and a 360-degree window, but she was lucky claustrophobia was not in her nature. She listened to the Force and found the light in it. This almost felt like the Beacerika’s test back on Supher all over again. Rey settled herself down on the single chair in the pod and pressed the button which closed the door. Still taking deep breaths, she took the mask off her face and clutched her lightsaber close to her chest. There was enough oxygen in the pod that she did not need it. She repeated what Luke Skywalker just told her to herself, “‘We’ve passed down all we know. But this is your fight.’”  
“When the escape pod launches, I will come up from behind and catch you.” Kylo Ren explained. He tried to feel as confident as Rey felt, but it was difficult. He definitely had compassion for her. She heard him, but she was too in tuned with the Force to dissect his words. Something was waiting for her in the wormhole. She just knew it. The young woman inhaled and exhaled one more time, to tell herself she was ready, and then she pressed the escape pod’s launch button.  
“Temiri! What the heck are you doing here?!” Rose was just as surprised as Lando, Poe, Finn, and Chewie.  
“Isn’t it obvious?” he asked, “I couldn’t let you guys have all the fun. Rey is my friend too.”  
“How did you sneak on board?” was Rose’s next question.  
“I hid out in the storage compartment until you guys boarded.”  
“Temiri! You’re impossible!”  
“Aw, thank you. That’s the nicest thing anyone’s ever said to me. So, when are we going to gun it to the wormhole?”  
“You know, I think this kid has potential.” Lando chuckled. He gestured with his hand for Temiri to join him in the pilot seat, “Come here, shortstack.”  
“Excuse me.” Temiri passed by the still surprised Rose and stopped next to Lando’s arm, “Yes, Mr. Calrissian?”  
Lando took his shoulder with one hand and pointed at the _Falcon’s_ computer with his other one, “Why don’t you type in the coordinates to the Suicide Territories? Heck, I’ll even give you a chance at the wheel.”  
“Whoa! Hold the phone!” Instantly, Poe was on his feet, and he stomped towards the pilot seat, “You’re going to let a little kid fly the _Falcon_, but not an ace pilot? I find this very odd.”  
“Kid, I think you should just stick to your X-Wings,” said Lando, “Temiri and I are two peas in a pod, unlike us. Go on, Temiri. Type in the coordinates.” When he said this, he climbed out of the pilot seat and let Temiri sit in it. The young slave could not believe what was happening to him. This was nothing like playing The Big Four back at the Jedi academy. This was the real deal. Temiri himself was going to fly the _Falcon_.  
He too put his trust in the Force. As he typed in the coordinates of the Suicide Territories, he seemed to stare into space. Behind him, Finn’s satchel suddenly lifted into the sky, and the ancient Jedi texts floated out of it.  
Gasping, he reached for them, but his hand missed the books. Instead, they floated to Temiri and circled him from above, as if they were a halo. “Rey,” he spoke in a low voice, “I feel her.”  
“Rey?” Finn asked. Excitement bubbled inside him, and he too leaped to his feet, “You know where she is?”  
“Yes.”  
“Then what are you waiting for? Jump us to lightspeed!”  
“I still think it’s wrong to have a kid fly the _Falcon_.” Poe spoke, but everybody ignored him. Lando, Finn, and Rose came within reach of the pilot seat and hovered behind young Temiri. Chewie smiled at him from the co-pilot seat, and he returned the smile.  
Lando pointed to the lightspeed latch, also smiling, and told him, “Pull this latch. It will jump us to lightspeed.” Scoffing, Poe crossed his arms.  
He approached 3PO and told him in a jealous voice, “You would think they’ve never seen a kid before.”  
“Oh, lighten up,” spoke the droid, “This child is very Force-sensitive. At least give him a chance.” R2 and BB-8 also joined the party. For the first time ever, BB-8 did not stay with Poe. Like everybody else, he was very curious about this Force-sensitive child.  
Rey’s aura was very strong. Temiri felt it. His small hand rested on the lightspeed latch. With the help of Lando, he pulled it. Right when he did, a blanket of blue surrounded the_ Millennium Falcon_, and whoosh! Lightspeed took it away.  
Rey held her breath as the escape pod detached from the disabled _Proud_ and headed straight into the mouth of the wormhole. The second it did, BOOM! _The Proud_ blew up behind her. Kylo Ren gasped as the force of the explosion knocked him back. It tossed him right out of the gravity field surrounding the wormhole, and he ended up back in the Phonolukamy Blockade, right as a Star Destroyer jumped out of lightspeed. It was _The Limpton_. Yelling in frustration, the conflicted Supreme Leader punched his flying console. He was so close! He nearly had Rey! He was going to help her, but she proved she didn’t need any help. He felt like the failure he was back on Crait, but he was not going to give up. He would capture the girl, and he would turn her to the Dark side.  
As the escape pod traveled through the wormhole, Rey waited for her arms and legs to stretch out for spaghettification, but they never did. She continued to hug her lightsaber to her chest, but then she froze. Something moved outside the pod in the wormhole itself. She knew something was in it. The Force told her so. She did not blink, and she gulped when next to her appeared the face…of a creature. What she was looking at was a monster from the deep.  
Unlike the Beacerika before it, this creature looked more amphibian and fishlike than alien. A long fin stretched down from its neck to the length of its exceptionally long tail, and its front pair of legs were longer than its back pair. It had webbed toes, white eyes with no pupils, and two antennas stuck up from its nostrils. Its body shimmered white, and its teeth were thin and sharp.  
The gravity was insane! Rey felt it hit the back of the escape pod, but it did not affect the creature at all. Instead, it roared and disappeared in the walls of the wormhole. Rey got up from her seat.  
She banged her head in the process, but she had to get a better look at this monster. “Unknown creature,” spoke the mechanical voice of the pod. Unknown? Did that mean this creature was not a local in the Phonolukamy Wormhole? Suddenly, a long, scaly tail emerged from the shadows, and it headed for a strike on the pod. The young woman sensed it, so she hurried to the basic control method of the pod – buttons that told it to move left or right. She pressed one button and moved left, causing the tail to miss her, and then moved to the right when it came at her from the opposite side. As she tried to escape it, she sensed something else. Scraps of _The Proud_ appeared behind her – the gravity forced them to follow the pod, and she ordered them to her command with the Force. The creature showed itself and hovered in front of her. White eyes shimmering, it flapped its finned toes like wings, and its tail waved behind it. Rey held out her hand and clenched her teeth. Right when she did, the scraps of _The Proud_ stopped, and they changed their course. Now, blankets of scraps flew past either side of the escape pod, and they bombarded the creature. Roaring in what Rey didn’t know was pain or anger, it keeled over, and this allowed the pod to slip by it. Then things got really insane. Rey was nearing the end of the Phonolukamy Wormhole, where the gravity was the strongest. She could see the end of it, but the creature did not want to lose her that easily.  
Therefore, it went after her again. “Come on! Come on!” Rey begged as she edged closer to the end of the wormhole, “Just a little more, baby! I’m going to make it!” By now, half the escape pod was out of the wormhole, but suddenly, it started to drift back into it! “Huh?” questioned the Force-sensitive young woman, “Oh, you’ve got to be kidding me!” The creature refused to give up. It appeared behind the pod and opened its mouth. Right when it did, a vacuum of air escaped it and started to pull Rey towards it. She peered over her shoulder to the gaping mouth and shouted, “Accelerator! Accelerator!” Her eyes knocked together as the pod stalled. She started to lose engine life because the creature was sucking it all away. She had to do something, something fast or else she would be the blue plate special! Then Rey saw it. A button for the emergency accelerator. She checked her fuel tank and saw that she had enough for just one jump, so she had to make it count.  
Rey waited until the creature sucked her in.  
The second she was in its saliva-filled mouth and heading for its throat, she shouted, “Here goes!” and punched the accelerator. Silence. Nothing happened. Did the creature eat Rey? Nope, it did not. A bright flash of light came from within its mouth, and BOOM! Out shot the escape pod. “Whoo!” Rey cheered as she escaped the creature as well as the Phonolukamy Wormhole. She knew she could do it! Rey was Rey! She could do anything! Although she had to admit, that was one of the craziest flights she has ever had, and it was all thanks to an escape pod. Now she was heading towards a small planet that had very little light in it. It was primarily brown with very little blue. Phonolukamy. Seeing it, the young woman hopped back in her seat and strapped herself in as she prepared for landing. Once again, the engine of the pod started to die, but by now it just entered the planet’s atmosphere and was heading for a brown-tinged lake. Surrounding the lake was a desolate landscape that had absolutely no life on it. Rey tightened her grip on her safety straps and yelled, “Tallyho!”  
The escape pod soon made it to the planet’s surface. It landed on the lake and skimmed it like a skipping stone. Skip, skip, skip! Then it stopped, and the pod rested on the surface of the water. As quick as a flash, Rey unstrapped herself and pushed open the hatch. She did this because one, she felt the pod sinking and two, that crazy adventure through the wormhole gave her slight motion sickness. With lightsaber in hand, she crawled out of the hatch and climbed on top of her ride. Her hazel brown eyes wandered as she examined the desolate, dystopian planet, and then they landed on the water. Legs slightly shaking, Rey put her lightsaber on her belt and dove off the escape pod. Splash! When she came to surface, she swam in the direction of land and asked herself just how in the world she managed to make it through the Phonolukamy Wormhole by herself. If Luke did not help her, she may have never made it. At the end of the day, Luke was the true hero.  
Kylo Ren knew _The Limpton_ was behind him. That just made his day a whole lot worse. He gave Hux strict orders to wait until he returned from his mission to travel to the Phonolukamy Blockade, and guess what? He disobeyed him. Kylo was not in the mood for this. He needed someone to take his anger and frustration out on, so whenever _The Limpton_ picked him up he would not hesitate. Further away from the blockade, another ship just bounced out of light speed. The _Millennium Falcon_.  
Lando pointed at the blockade in front of it and said, “There it is. The Phonolukamy Blockade.” Everybody grew antsy, even Poe, for they knew they had a very difficult task ahead of them – one that would determine the fate of the Resistance, the fate of Rey, and the fate of the whole galaxy.


	9. Descendant of Evil

“So that’s what we’re dealing with?” Finn hoped the tremble in his voice was unnoticeable, but he highly doubted it was.  
Without looking at him, Lando explained, “Well, that’s only part of it. Not to mention we also have to travel through a wormhole.”  
“So how did you get past these guys in the first place?” Rose wanted to know, “The First Order may not be the smartest people in the galaxy, but they’re not stupid.” Even though Finn used to work for the First Order, he could not help but to agree with her.  
He always wondered why stormtroopers had such bad aim. “That’s Kylo Ren’s ship.” Temiri suddenly spoke from the _Falcon’s_ pilot seat.  
“Kylo Ren? Where?” As if he forgot what he said earlier about a little kid flying the legendary ship, Poe rushed to his side, “Where?”  
“There.” Temiri pointed forward to _The Limpton_. It just opened its hatch, and a TIE Silencer flew into it. “Kylo Ren is here,” explained the young boy, “and he is upset about something.”  
“Is it about Rey?” Finn wondered. He knew Rey and Kylo Ren had a connection like no other, “Is Rey on that ship?”  
“Unclear. I just feel frustration and a little bit of sadness.”  
“Kylo Ren sad?” Finn almost laughed, but he held it behind a scoff, “Since when is that monster sad?”  
“I think he wanted to help Rey, but he failed.” Temiri had no idea why he felt that what he was saying was true. The Force truly was a confusing gift, “We need to go him.”  
“What?!” Poe, Rose, and Finn asked at the same time, but Lando merely smirked.  
This child indeed was Force-sensitive. “What about Rey?” said Finn, “I thought the whole reason why we left Supher was to chase after her.”  
“Perhaps, but Rey is not the only one struggling between the Light and Dark sides of the Force.” Temiri answered, “I feel it. Kylo Ren is too. He wants to find her, and he needs help.”  
“If he finds her, he is going to turn her to the Dark side!” Poe argued.  
“How can you be so sure, Mr. Dameron?” Temiri asked with confidence in his voice, “If we are going to win this war, we need to set up alliances with old enemies. Currently, I feel Rey is more dangerous than Kylo.”  
“I think we should listen to this kid.” Lando said before things could get too dicey, “I will say that I did have to communicate with the First Order in order to get through the blockade, so perhaps we _should_ confront Kylo Ren.”  
“Why don’t we just get an army of X-Wings and blow up his ship?” asked Poe, “Boom. End of story.” Wow, everybody really did hate Kylo Ren. “We get rid of Kylo, we save Rey.” Poe forced a nervous smile when he said this.  
“You know what?” asked 3PO, “I think I’m just going to slip back into headquarters and shut down for the night.”  
“3PO, you’re an even bigger coward than I thought,” said Poe.  
“Well, I am not programmed to throw myself into battles I know I can’t win.”  
An idea suddenly popped into Lando’s brain when the droid said this, “Then it’s settled! We’ll use you as bait to get us to Kylo Ren!”  
“Now just wait a minute!” Even though he was a droid, there was definitely some emotion in 3PO’s voice, “That isn’t what I meant! It’s very unfair to my programming for me to pretend I am an alliance of the First Order.”  
“Yeah, what happened to blowing up the ship?” asked Poe.  
“We’re not here to confront Kylo Ren.” Rose said with her arms crossed, and Finn spoke right after her,  
“We’re here to save Rey.”  
Temiri even joined in on the argument, and he was a little kid, “The only way to save her is to save Kylo Ren from himself. What I’m saying, guys is that we _need_ to _let_ Rey turn to the Dark side.” Just as the words escaped his lips, all color drained from Poe’s, Finn’s, and Rose’s faces. Lando thought Temiri’s idea was very accurate, so he just nodded with agreement.  
“You are one messed up stowaway.” Poe said with a shake of his head, “And I thought Mr. Calrissian’s plan was bad.”  
“You’re kidding, Temiri,” said Finn, “Tell me are. I don’t know what gave you a crazy idea like that. The whole reason why we’re in this mess in the first place is because of Kylo Ren.”  
“You’re wrong.” Temiri shook his head. Finn, Rose, and Poe tried to argue with him, but Lando shouted,  
“Hey! Let the kid speak!” Right as he said this, he flipped up a switch for anti-gravity. Poe, Finn, and Rose yelped as they lifted into the air and headed towards the _Falcon’s_ ceiling. Chewie, Lando, and Temiri were strapped to their seats, so they remained on the ground. 3PO and both astromechs also lifted into the sky. R2 beeped with panic while BB-8 beeped excitedly.  
3PO just said, “Oh my! We seem to be floating in zero gravity!”  
“Really, 3PO? You don’t say?” asked Rose, and she peeped down to Lando, “Mr. Calrissian, please. Turn off the anti-gravity.”  
“Not until you listen to Temiri.” And with that, Lando glanced at Temiri and nodded.  
He nodded back and took a deep breath as he tried the best way to explain his plan.  
When eventually he came up with something, he spoke in a voice that told Poe, Finn, and Rose he knew what he was saying, “This is what Leia told me back on Supher. It is Rey’s _destiny_ to turn to the Dark side, and Ren’s _destiny_ to turn to the Light side. When Ben Solo comes out of his shell and joins the Resistance, we will work together to bring Rey back to the Light side. Together, Rey and Ben will take out the true villain we are dealing with here. A villain whom Leia knew from her youth.”  
“Do you know who he’s talking about?” Lando asked Poe, Rose, and Finn. Chewie knew and so did C-3PO and R2-D2. At the same time, Finn, Rose, and Poe shook their heads no. They weren’t around at the time of the Rebellion. “During our journey to help out Ben, you will figure out who,” explained Lando.  
“Rey can’t turn to the Dark side!” Finn argued, “There is no one in the galaxy who exceeds her power!”  
“You’re wrong, kid. There is somebody, and only Rey and Kylo Ren can defeat him.” With that, Lando pulled back the switch of the anti-gravity, and Finn, Rose, and Poe fell to the ground. They landed on top of one another at Lando’s and Temiri’s feet. While they lied there, they tried to dissect everything the veteran pilot and child just told them.  
Before long, something crossed Finn’s mind,  
“Wait a minute,” and he hopped off Poe and Rose, “Temiri, you’re not a stowaway, are you? Leia sent you here, did she not?”  
“She did.” Temiri nodded, “She asked me to come because Rey and I have very similar Force abilities. We are intertwined, and we both know what we must do. We _have_ to bring Kylo Ren back to the Light side, and our first step is to have him join the Resistance.”  
“With that said, let’s boot it to _The Limpton_ and pick up the man of the hour.” Lando chuckled, “I’ll tell you; I am super excited to see how this plan plays out.”  
“You did not crash into the No’Ela Lagoon just for the heck of it, right?” was Finn’s next question, “Leia also sought you out.”  
“Correct, kid. I’m glad you finally figured that out. She gave me a call and said that the next generation of space heroes need some help. Twas, here I am.” When he said this, Lando grinned and proudly shrugged his shoulders.  
“But that still doesn’t answer the question why you sought out a gangster on Phonolukamy.”  
Finn still had to know, but Lando still wanted to keep the secret to himself, “I’ll tell you, son, but only when the time comes. Right now, we have one mission and one mission only. Destroy the Phonolukamy Blockade by kidnapping the Supreme Leader of the First Order.”  
“YOU ARE A DISGRACE TO THE WHOLE FIRST ORDER!!” Kylo Ren boomed to Hux in his throne room, “I TOLD YOU NOT TO COME, AND YET HERE YOU ARE!”  
“Hey, it’s not my fault you are too weak to capture the girl.” Hux smirked.  
“I AM NOT WEAK! I HAD HER! I LITERALLY HAD HER, AND YOU RUINED EVRYTHING! NOW THANKS TO YOU, SHE’S PROBALY ALREADY ON PHONOLUKAMY!”  
“No, what happened is that you gave into your Light side energy, and that caused you to lose your prey.”  
“Light side energy?” Both confusion and anger blasted through Kylo’s body, “Who do you think you are? I hereby demote you! I knew I should have never turned the position of Supreme Leader over to you!”  
“It’s too late. I am mighty comfortable here.” With that, Hux crossed his right leg over his left knee and placed his hands behind his head.  
“Then I’ll kill you and take back what is rightfully mine.”  
“I’d love to see you try.”  
Just when Supreme Leader Hux said that, Kylo Ren pulled his lightsaber off his belt and ignited it. The red light shone on his face, and he tightly gripped the handle of the weapon. He wanted to kill Hux so badly, but at the same time, something in his head told him to spare his life.  
Just like what happened with Leia, he hesitated. “Well?” Hux asked, “Are you going to do it or not?”  
“I’m mentally preparing myself, thank you very much!” Ren, though, still could not bring himself to run his lightsaber through Hux.  
The light energy in him was way too strong. “You’re not going to do it,” cackled Hux, “I know you’re not.”  
“Ugh!” Ren deactivated his lightsaber and threw it to the ground. He clenched his fists so tightly, they turned white.  
Hux glared at him and said, “I think it’s safe to say that you’re the disgrace. Not me.”  
“I will prove you wrong!” Ren growled, “I know who the girl is, unlike you. She will smack that smirk straight off your ugly face when I teach her everything I know!”  
“We’ll see about that…Ben Solo.”  
Rey was exhausted when she finally lugged herself out of Phonolukamy’s lake onto the desolate landscape. The escape pod disappeared underwater, leaving her all alone on the dystopian planet.  
She rested her hand on her injured arm and searched the area, calling, “Hello?” When she received no answer, she tried again, “Hello? Can somebody help me?” Still no answer. Rey pushed herself to her feet and tried to look for any sign of life. Nothing. She felt like she was the only living thing on the whole planet of Phonolukamy. Her eyes landed on a cliff at the end of the landscape, and she could not help but to feel like she saw something hidden in the shadows across it. Rey turned on a serious face and headed for it. She passed rock towers and stepped on numerous cracks in the rocky ground. That was a lot of broken backs. But then she stopped when BOOM! A geyser exploded right in front of her and threw her back! Rey smashed down on her back, but she quickly sat up and focused her attention on the geysers. One by one they exploded. BOOM! BOOM! BOOM! The explosions made her antsy especially since each one was stronger and bigger than the last. Rey did not give up though. She leaped to her feet and ran towards the geysers. Once again, they exploded, and she retreated back with her hands held up to her face.  
She remembered what Luke told her in the wormhole, _“‘We’ve passed down all we know. A thousand generations live in you. But this is your fight.’”_ Rey knew what she had to do. She had to use the Force to find her way through the geysers and to the shadow on the horizon. With a plan in mind, she took a deep breath and closed her eyes. Her head filled with the sound of the exploding geysers. She felt the Force – the light. Rey calmed herself down by telling herself she could do this. If she made it through the Phonolukamy Wormhole, then she could make it through these geysers.  
As soon as the young woman felt calm, she started her trek. Rey lifted her foot and stepped right into the mass of exploding geysers. BOOM! None of them incinerated her. Instead, they spewed up all around her and created a magnificent light show. The first geyser she stepped over exploded into the air after she left it. Her ears rang due to the sound, but she kept on moving with her eyes still closed. She knew she could do this, and sure enough she succeeded. Rey made it to the end of the pit of geysers, and as soon as she did, every single geyser exploded behind her. BOOM! BOOM! BOOM! The sight was breathtaking. The edge of the cliff was the next stop after the pit. Rey opened her eyes and stood on the very end of it. A sudden zephyr blew her robes and hair, and she maintained a serious face as she studied her find. The shadow Rey saw…it was a crashed _Star Destroyer_.


	10. Quest of the Unknown

“What is a _Star Destroyer_ doing here on Phonolukamy?” Rey was highly curious. She had to get a closer look at her discovery, but then she discovered that she was standing on the edge of a cliff. She fell to her knees and looked over it to the drop below. Rey would jump, but she knew she would become a pancake if she did. Therefore, to start her journey to the wrecked starship she climbed down the cliff’s face. Rey had no idea if she was holding her breath or not the entire time she did. Her boot hit a loose platform, and it broke under her weight. Yelping, the young woman glued her body to the wall, and she watched as the pieces of the platform crashed into the desolate landscape below.  
Teeth clenched, she peeped over her shoulder to the wrecked _Star Destroyer_ and told herself, “I have to go there.” The wreck was calling out to her. Did it expect her? What was going on here? As Rey helplessly hung from the wall, she wished she was back on Supher. She would choose Supher’s tropical atmosphere over Phonolukamy’s dystopian one any day, but she knew she could not return until she completed her mission. Perhaps something in the _Destroyer_ would give her a clue about how she should approach Ben the next time she saw him. She knew he was coming after her, and she had to be ready when he reached her. What Rey needed was a little more Jedi training. She felt that she would get just that if she took a day trip to the wrecked starship. With this thought in mind, she continued down the wall.

  
Rey climbed for she didn’t know how long, but eventually she reached the bottom of the cliff, and she hopped off it. Now the _Star Destroyer_ was directly in front of her. Just staring at it, Rey felt an overwhelming amount of dark energy. She looked up to a broken window and nodded to herself. Just when she finished her climb, she had to take another one. Standing next to the _Star Destroyer_, she looked like a speck of dust. A huge moon hovered behind it, and it took up the length of the sky.  
Rey thought she heard someone say, _“Come, child,”_ from the frame of the window she wanted to enter from. Was it a ghost? Rey had no idea. She rested her hand on the hilt of her lightsaber and started towards the starship. _“Reach out to your destiny,”_ the voice told her, _“or I will do it myself.”_  
“The Beacerika is not going to capture me.” Rey explained as she edged closer to her discovery, “So you can stop using it as a weapon against me. Just watch. I am going to turn Ben Solo, and you’re not going to get in my way.”  
“Oh, so you know who I am?”  
“I have a pretty good feeling about it.”  
_“Very well then. I’ll meet you inside.”_ Then just like that, the presence left Rey’s head, and this told her it had gone inside the _Star Destroyer_. She stopped next to it and climbed onto the ship’s nose. Rey sauntered across the top of it and headed for the broken window. Eventually reaching it, she hopped onto the window frame, where the presence just was, and peered into the interior of her find. What she was looking at was the _Destroyer’s_ bridge. Old, busted computers scattered the floor, as well as broken astromechs and droids. Resting on top of one of the broken droids was an old, black cape. Seeing it, Rey headed inside to the dark bridge and came within reach of it. She picked up the cape and wrapped it around her shoulders to stay warm. She had to admit, it was extremely cold here on Phonolukamy. To prepare herself for whatever she was about to get herself into, the young woman took her lightsaber off her belt and ignited it. Then, with it in hand, she took some time to study the _Destroyer’s_ bridge. There was something in here – she just knew it, and whatever that was, it was going to forever change her.

  
Kylo Ren could see everything Rey saw and feel everything she felt from his headquarters. He did not need to be on Phonolukamy in order to do so.  
Just like the days leading up to the battle in Snoke’s throne room, the Force connected the two youths. “What are you going to do to her?” he asked a seemingly invisible presence in the room, “We’re not trying to kill her. We just need to lead her back here.” That was when he saw the cape Rey just put on, “Hold on. That cape. I know that cape. Why did you give it to her?”  
Before long, the same, eerie voice whom spoke to Rey from the broken windowsill spoke to him, _“That cape is filled full of the energy she needs to complete her training.”_  
“To complete her training? You don’t think I can do it myself?”  
“The light you wield is too strong.”

  
“Attention, First Order,” Lando Calrissian called from the _Millennium Falcon’s_ cockpit just outside _The Limpton_, “this is Lando Calrissian. I request an appointment with Supreme Leader Ren.”  
However, instead of Ren’s voice on the intercom, he heard General Hux, “This is Hux. I am the Supreme Leader now.”  
What? Finn mouthed behind Lando. “Since when did he become Supreme Leader?” he asked out loud.  
“Any communication you have with the First Order, you clear with me first.” Hux demanded, “Tell me why you wish to seek out Ren, and maybe I’ll let you through.”  
“It’s personal and has to do with Yamo,” was Lando’s answer.  
“Yamo?” asked Poe, “Wait a minute.” He narrowed his eyebrows and suspiciously studied Lando Calrissian.  
“Personal or not, I will not let you through until you tell me!” With each passing second, Hux sounded even more annoyed.  
“Hey, look, pal.” Lando communicated back, “I did this once, and I intend to do it again.”  
“Not on my watch. Kylo Ren belongs to me!” Hux, who stood in the bridge of _The Limpton_, approached a line of technicians and yelled at them, “Release the Beacerika! Destroy that ship and feed it to the wormhole!”  
“Yes, sir!” Right at his command, the technicians rapidly typed into their computers.

  
Outside in the heart of the blockade, a huge, shadowy face appeared behind the _Millennium Falcon_.  
Rose noticed it from the side window and nervously asked, “Uh, guys?”  
“We are so dead,” was the first thing Finn said. What the _Falcon_ was going up against was the same creature whom Rey fought in the Phonolukamy Wormhole. It was the Beacerika’s Space Form.

  
Kylo Ren had had enough of all this sissy business. He was tired of people telling him that he could not train Rey in the Dark side of the Force. The fact that all their hope had gone from him to a mere cape enraged him. Yelling, he chucked his lightsaber to the other end of his headquarters and stormed out of it.  
Stormtroopers quickly moved off to the side and let him through as he hurried to _The Limpton’s_ ship hanger where he climbed into his TIE Silencer. Starting it up, he punched the accelerator and took off. The only thing conflicted Kylo Ren/Ben Solo didn’t have with him was his lightsaber.

  
Finn and Rose took up the _Millennium Falcon’s_ guns while Lando, Chewie, Poe, Temiri, and the droids remained in the cockpit. The Beacerika launched its tail at the ship, but the _Falcon_ quickly spun out of its way.  
Surprisingly, it was Temiri who made that move. “Well done, kid!” Lando laughed. He high-fived with Chewie. Poe tried to take the wheel from the young boy, but the veteran pilot merely slapped his hand away. He pointed Temiri in the direction of the meteoroid belt Rey and Kylo fought from earlier and announced, “Head for that meteoroid belt! Oh, isn’t this exciting? Where are you going, 3PO? You’re missing out on all the fun!”  
“I think I should just check on Finn and Rose,” was 3PO’s answer, but he yelled when the face of the Beacerika suddenly appeared next to the window he was passing.  
Freaking out, the droid quickly made a run for it, even though he did not move that fast. “Rose, shoot it!” Finn yelled from one of the gunner seats, “It’s on your side!”  
“I’m trying!” Rose wasn’t exactly used to the _Falcon’s_ gunner chair yet. She jerked back and forth and spun in circles. It felt like she was riding in an aerotrim, and she did not enjoy it. However, she went ahead and went for the shot. Rose struck the Beacerika in the side, and it cried out. “I did it!” she cheered, “Yes!” but she celebrated too soon. The Beacerika smacked the _Millennium Falcon_ in the side, which sent it flying out of control. Whoosh!

  
All occupants screamed and tried not to toss their cookies.  
“Rose!” Finn screamed, “Are you all right?!” He noticed that a meteor was heading straight for the _Falcon_, and he blasted it to bits before it could disable the ship.  
Even though she had a small cut above her eye from crashing into the gun with the impact, Rose was fine, and she shouted, “Yeah!” at Finn.  
He sighed with relief, but then he noticed that the space surrounding the _Falcon_ was empty, “Wait. Where’s the overgrown chicken?”  
“It just vanished?” Rose yelled in a panicked voice, but right as she said that, the entire ship shook. The Beacerika came at it from above and set its body on top of it.  
In the cockpit, 3PO again yelled when the ugly face of the creature took over the whole windshield, “It’s got us! We’re doomed!”  
Even though he saw no way out of this, Temiri remained brave, and he asked Lando, “Now what do we do, Mr. Calrissian?” For the first time ever, Lando did not have an answer.  
Temiri gave him a desperate look, but this was all the veteran pilot said, “I don’t know.”  
Now it was Poe’s time to grow nervous, and he said in a low voice, “It’s got us,” right as Finn and Rose reentered the cockpit.  
The _Falcon_ shook again, and at the sight of the ugly face on the windshield, Finn observed, “There’s no way out of this. The _Falcon_ may have made the Kessel Run in twelve parsecs, but it cannot escape the clutches of the Beacerika. I think it’s safe to say the bad guys have won.”  
“It pains me to say this, but I think he’s right.” Lando said, “There is no way out of this.”  
“We’ve lost all hope.” Temiri cried as a few tears ran down his cheeks, but he froze when he heard something, a Force message, in his head,  
“We’ll see about that!” and BOOM! A blaster bolt hit the Beacerika smack in the face, which caused it to peel its body away from the _Millennium Falcon_! Rose, Poe, Finn, Lando, and Temiri gasped, Chewie roared, and the astromechs beeped when a TIE Silencer emerged from deep space. Kylo Ren.

  
“AHHHH!!” Rey screamed when she felt the Beacerika’s pain. She grabbed her head and collapsed to her hands and knees. Tightly closing her eyes and clenching her teeth, the young woman punched the ground and once again ignited her lightsaber. Rising to her feet, she violently ran it through astromechs, droids, screens, and the bridge’s computers. It was as if she was having a nervous breakdown. Just like Kylo Ren, she chucked her lightsaber, and its blade cut off a huge piece of the _Destroyer’s_ wall. She lifted her hands high above her head and then punched the ground with both fists. Punch! Right when she did, scraps of droids, astromechs, and computers lifted into the air. They crashed into the walls of the wrecked _Destroyer_, CRASH, and using the Dark side energy she wielded from her cape, Rey blew up the entire ship! KABOOM!  
A huge explosion bit into Phonolukamy’s atmosphere, sending the scraps to pollute it. Within seconds, there was no more _Star Destroyer_. Just scraps and a cloud of smoke that looked like it came from an erupting volcano.

  
Rey emerged from the destruction, totally wiped out. She inhaled breaths of air, but it wasn’t long until she closed her eyes. The young woman swayed to one side, then the other, and fell unconscious on the ground. Right when she did, an evil laugh overtook the entire area. Off to the side a shadow appeared, and it made its way towards the wiped out, unconscious girl.

“It’s Kylo Ren!” Poe shouted in pure amazement when the TIE Silencer zoomed by the _Millennium Falcon_ and chased after the crippled Beacerika.  
“He’s helping us?!” Finn screamed, “What the heck is going on?!”  
“Move!” Poe hurried to the empty pilot seat and plopped down in it.  
“What are you doing?” Lando asked behind him.  
“What does it look like? I’m going to help him!” And with that, Poe urged the _Falcon_ forward.

  
The Beacerika zoomed around space and tried to escape the Silencer, but Ben kept on striking it with his gun.  
“You’re nothing but annoying!” he shouted, and he quickly moved out of the way of the creature’s tail. Behind him came the _Millennium Falcon_. Ben watched as the younger pilot in it shot its webbed toes, and the ship cut through the membrane. Kylo Ren delivered the next blow. Screeching, the Beacerika backed away from the two ships as its membrane started to sizzle and burn. With one last devastating strike, Ben knocked it back into the Phonolukamy Wormhole, where it belonged, and accelerated out of the gravity field surrounding it. He listened as the creature’s screeches grew quieter and quieter until they disappeared altogether. Under him and off to the side appeared the _Falcon_. Finn, Rose, Lando, and Temiri looked like statues. Their jaws touched the ground, and their eyes widened to the point they almost looked like they were about to come bursting out of their sockets.

  
In the cockpit of his Silencer, Ben’s fingers rested on his guns’ launch triggers, and a tear ran down his cheek. “What did I just do?” he asked in a slightly choked voice, and then his own eyes widened when he felt a familiar aura, “Rey.”  
Back on Phonolukamy where the wrecked _Star Destroyer_ used to be, a shadowy figure carried the unconscious, Force-sensitive girl away. They disappeared behind a rock pillar, leaving nothing but scraps behind…including Rey’s lightsaber.


	11. Optional Read: For Anyone Who is Curious about Supher, Phonolukamy, and the Beacerika

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Note: This is just an optional read for anyone who is curious about the new planets I chose and for anyone who is curious about the Beacerika. At the end of the document, you will find an activity that is also optional. Hopefully, this will answer some of the questions you may have. In case you can't tell already, I am having a lot of fun writing this story, and I hope you are having just as much fun as me.
> 
> Sincerely,  
VikaFromTheMoon

_New Planets_

_A long time ago in a galaxy far, far away…_

Supher (Sue-fear):

Supher, which derives from the word "Samoa," is a tropical planet that serves as the new Resistance base in my version of The Rise of the Skywalker. It is cut off from the rest of the galaxy and is a haven for anyone who wants to get away from the First Order. Supher is the home of Rey's Jedi academy that she starts with Leia. The planet is famous for its warm atmosphere, beaches, and lagoons. A few of the most well-known beaches are Palm Tree Beach, Emarin (Em-er-in) Beach, and Rhilei (Ri-ley) Beach. The Resistance base is located on the island of No'Ela (No-ella), which sits on top of the No'Ela Lagoon. Due to Supher's elegant and beautiful atmosphere, it is the perfect getaway for anyone who wants to find peace of the galaxy. However, buried deep in its core is something dark that puts any Force-sensitive person in danger…the Beacerika.

The Beacerika (Beach-er-e-ka):

As mentioned in the story, the Beacerika is a Force-sensitive life form whom thrives under the No'Ela Lagoon. While it lives primarily underwater, it also thrives on Dark Side Island, a mysterious island where light and darkness intertwine. The Beacerika snuffs out anyone who is struggling between the Light and Dark sides of the Force and takes them on a journey to their true destiny. It is neither good nor bad, and it follows its victims everywhere until they find their place in the galaxy. Because of this, it can take on multiple forms. There is only one way to defeat the Beacerika, which is something Rey and Kylo Ren will have to figure out themselves.

Conclusion:

In conclusion, the planet of Supher is a paradise that is perfect for any tropical getaway, if you are not a Force-sensitive individual whom struggles between the Light and Dark sides of the Force. If you are, most likely the Beacerika will ruin your vacation. When this happens, it is up to the victim to pass through its barrier and use whatever skills they have that will help them discover who they are truly meant to be.

Phonolukamy (Phone-o-luke-a-my):

Phonolukamy is the opposite of Supher. While Supher is a utopian planet, Phonolukamy is a dystopian planet. One of the main reasons behind this is the Phonolukamy Wormhole. In order to enter and exit the planet, one must travel through it in a ship that is neither too big or too small, and that alone is a very difficult task. With such a stressful way to get to a planet, it is not surprising that Phonolukamy's inhabitants combine farming with machinery; they have such limited resources. Unlike Supher, Phonolukamy does not have sandy beaches and turquoise lagoons. Its environment is dry and raw. It also has a nickname, the "Graveyard of the Galaxy." Ships that fail to pass through the Wormhole usually crash in the desolate landscape. Since civilizations are so spread out, it is difficult for someone to find help when they know they are dying. Not only that, but Phonolukamy has a history like no other.

Conclusion:

Even though Phonolukamy is a rather desolate planet, most people agree that it is one of the most mysterious planets in the whole galaxy, and this is not just because of its history, nickname, and wild way to get to it. Something is hiding on the planet. Something that will forever change Rey and Kylo Ren.

Now…

Let's have some fun.

Question for readers:

If you lived in the _Star Wars_ universe and had a vacation option of either Supher or Phonolukamy, which planet would you choose and why?


	12. Chapter 11: The Moceka Graveyard

Despite there were so many terrible things happening to her right now, Rey had a relatively pleasant dream. She dreamt she was back on Supher, with her friends next to her, and exploring the island of No’Ela. Finn grabbed her hand and pulled her into the lagoon, where he splashed her with water. Poe and Rose sat in lounge chairs and made small sandcastles at their feet, while Chewie, R2, and BB-8 playfully chased one another. Rey felt the planet’s warmth on her skin and tasted the salt water on her lips. The dream was so perfect. It was hard to believe she just blew up a whole Star Destroyer.  
Bright light shone on her face, but it did not belong to Supher’s light in the dream.

  
This light belonged to Phonolukamy, and it leaped her back into consciousness, as if it was trying to whip her into shape, “Shape up, Rey. You need it.” The young woman shuffled and slowly opened her eyes. She was resting on a bed in a small room. She was in a hut of some sort. Its stone walls provided warmth and comfort from Phonolukamy’s cold environment. Rey’s cape hung from a stone jutting out from the wall next to her. Momentarily, the bright light blinded her, but that was just because she was still trying to wake up. She slowly rose to a sitting position and swung her legs over the bed’s side. Aside from a small desk across from her, the only thing in the miniature room was the bed. There wasn’t even a window.

  
Bewildered, Rey studied her surroundings and tried to figure out where she was. She did not remember blowing up a wrecked Star Destroyer with an insane amount of Dark side energy. Her own power made her drunk. The last thing she remembered was putting on the cape, but after that everything was a blur. Her eyes rolled down to her right arm, and she saw that a new cloth bound her wound, or in better words, the Beacerika’s wound. Rey’s eyes then landed on her cape, and she stood up from the bed. Approaching it, she pulled the cape off the stone and wrapped it around her shoulders. That was when she noticed hieroglyphics on the wall. A huge mass of them surrounded the area where the cape used to be. Curious, Rey lifted her hand and pressed it up against one set of hieroglyphics. She tried to read them, but she did not recognize the alien language they were in. The hieroglyphics continued up the whole length of the wall. Rey took a step back from it so she could get a better look at them. With her arms out to her sides, she tilted back her head and studied them thoroughly.

  
Only a few minutes later, she heard a wise, female voice behind her,  
“Oh, you’re finally awake.” Gasping, the girl jumped ten feet in the air and whirled around. A beautiful, alien woman stood in the room’s doorway, and she carried a tray of food and water in her hands. Her skin was blue, her eyes cyan, and she had black hair with streaks of green and purple in it. A mark that looked very similar to the hieroglyphics went up the length of her upper, left arm. Just at the sight of her, Rey knew she was a native of Phonolukamy. Lukaemians (Luke-a-em-e-in) usually had blue skin and eyes. The woman set the tray of food and water down on the desk across from the bed Rey woke up in. “When I found you,” she explained in her mystical voice, “You were unconsciousness and your skin pale. Poor thing. You’ve been through a lot, haven’t you?”  
“Who are you?” Rey tried to find the confidence in her voice, but it was difficult.  
She never received an answer because the woman spat the question right back at her, “I think the better question is…who are _you_?” Rey felt great sadness in her heart when she said this.  
She remembered what Kylo Ren told her in Snoke’s throne room and turned her head away from the woman, “I’m nobody.”  
“Nobody? What an unusual name. Well, Nobody, what are you doing here on Phonolukamy?”  
“I don’t know.” And she didn’t. Rey could not remember why she came to Phonolukamy in the first place. It had something to do with Kylo Ren, but what? Her mind was a complete blur. It was as if the destruction of the Star Destroyer gave her amnesia.

  
“Poor thing.” The alien woman upsettingly shook her head, and she offered the young woman the tray of food and water, “Are you hungry?”  
“Not really.” But that was far from the truth. Rey was starving. She lost her breakfast, lunch, and dinner in the wormhole, but she was too shy to say this out loud. She did not want to look weak in front of this wise alien. Taking a deep breath, she looked the woman in her cyan blue eyes and repeated her question from before, “Who are you?”  
“I’m Aerolin, but everybody calls me Aero. What about you? I know your name is not ‘Nobody.’”  
“It’s Rey.”  
“Rey? That’s it?”  
Rey nodded, “That’s it.”  
“I see. And how old are you, Rey?”  
“Twenty.”  
“Twenty? Poor thing. You’re just a child. I remember when I was your age. My life was not as stressful as yours.”  
“It wasn’t?” Rey turned on a confused face and approached the alien, “But you live on Phonolukamy.”  
“True, but Phonolukamy is my home. What about you? Where are you from?”  
“I came from Supher.”  
“I didn’t ask where you came from. I asked where you’re from.”  
Once again, Rey turned on an upset face and looked away, “It’s a dump, and I never want to return.”  
“That still does not answer my question.”  
“Fine. I’m from Jakku.”  
“Jakku, eh? You sure are far from home here on the ‘Graveyard of the Galaxy.’”

  
“‘Graveyard of the Galaxy?’” Rey thought she was on Phonolukamy.  
Aero noticed her confused face and chuckled, “The ‘Graveyard of the Galaxy’ is Phonolukamy’s nickname. You have a mysterious aura surrounding you, young Rey. I wondered how you were able to blow up that Star Destroyer.”  
“Wait, what?!” Surprised, Rey shook her head as she dissected Aero’s words, “I blew up that whole Star Destroyer?”  
“Oh yes. It was quite the show – the craziest I’ve seen in three-hundred years.”  
“Three-hundred years?” Rey asked with widened eyes.  
“Lukaemians age slower than your kind, but enough questions. Follow me, child. I want to show you something.” And with that, Aero gently took Rey’s hand.

On their way out, she pointed at her upper, right arm and asked,  
“So, what did you do to your arm here?” When she said that, Rey glanced at her arm.  
Her voice trembled with her answer, “The Be-Beacerika? It attacked me on Supher.”  
“Did it attack you? Or was it testing you? You don’t need to hide your talents, child. I know you’re Force-sensitive and are struggling between the Light and Dark sides of the Force. What I saw with the Star Destroyer proved that to me.”  
“If that’s the case, then where are you taking me?”  
“You’ll see. Where we’re going – it will either help you…or shatter you.”

  
“I’ve never recalled going through a wormhole being this strenuous!” Finn shouted in the cockpit of the _Falcon_. After conversing with Kylo Ren for a bit and learning that he too was looking for Rey, he and his friends decided to go ahead and head through the Phonolukamy Wormhole together. This was after Kylo said he was 99.9% sure she went there. He led the way in his Silencer and kept a close eye out for the Beacerika.  
Lando Calrissian chuckled and told Finn, “That’s because you’ve never been through one before.”  
“And I thought light speed was bad!” Rose spoke. She grabbed hold of Finn’s arm and maintained a tight grip on it as the _Falcon_ continued to bounce and tumble through the wormhole, “How do we know Kylo isn’t leading us right into a trap?”  
“He’s not,” said Temiri, who sat on Chewie’s lap in the co-pilot seat, “You guys really need to learn to trust him a bit more.”  
“Trust him? Are you joking?” Finn snickered, “Do you know what he has done to the Resistance? He’s destroyed us. He kidnapped Rey, and he murdered Han Solo. So how can we trust him?”  
“He saved us, did he not?” asked Poe, “If he didn’t blow the Beacerika off the _Falcon_, most likely we would be in its stomach now.”  
“Still! He’s a monster!” Finn shivered and removed Rose’s hand from his arm. He hopped off his seat and headed towards the _Falcon’s_ common room, “Excuse me. I am going to go bury my head in a plate of sorrow.” With that said, he stepped out of the cockpit.

  
Finn dug his satchel out from the sleeping quarters and dragged it to the common room. He made sure nobody was watching and set it down on the table. He dug out the ancient Jedi texts and flipped through each book. Finn started with the _Aionomica_, and then moved on to the _Karobela_, _Rammahgon_, _Reacher_, and finally the _Xiteska_. He took mental notes as he examined each book. The main thing he was looking for in these books was information about the Light side of the Force, the Dark side, and perhaps the Beacerika if they had any information on it. Just like his friends and Kylo Ren, he was very curious about what happened to Rey on Dark Side Island. He started asking questions if the Beacerika indeed attacked her, or if it was just trying to test her. The questions he had about Rey were like the questions Aerolin had about her. She was such a mysterious individual. Finn loved Rey as a friend, but at times he did _fear_ her. The way she threw Lando back on Supher was not like her at all, and it made him uncomfortable. What if what Temiri said was true? What if it was Rey’s destiny to turn to the Dark side? Just thinking about this caused Finn to shiver. He opened the _Xiteska_ and stood it up in front of him.

However, the book flew from his hands when the _Falcon_ suddenly jerked. “Whoa!” Finn yelled as he flew forward. Getting up, he returned to the cockpit and asked, “What happened?”

  
Aerolin gave Rey a stick to help her navigate around Phonolukamy’s rocks and took her outside. Her hut was in a small village, and surrounding it were other huts as well as farmland.  
With the help of robots, droids, and astromechs, Lukaemians worked in the gardens. “Wow.” Rey spoke under her breath when she saw them. So, it was true. Lukaemians did combine farming with machinery. As she and Aerolin made their way through the village, the young Jedi chuckled when she saw how close the aliens and droids were. A few children played tag while their parents worked. Droids of all sort rolled by Rey and delivered farming necessities to the gardens. Considering this was a dystopian planet, nobody looked sad. In fact, they looked proud. Rey expected Phonolukamy to be a bit more depressing, so the sight of the Lukaemians enjoying life surprised her.

  
Only a few steps later, she heard a droid screeching behind her. An astromech collided into her legs and knocked her over. It had a square body with two, small hands, a long neck, and a petite, rectangular head. Rey landed on her side on the dry soil, and she cringed when she hit her arm. She watched as the astromech continued forward and crashed into a bunch of barrels and baskets that held farming supplies. CRASH! What a mess! Though slightly stunned, the droid shook out its head and returned to her and Aerolin.  
Aerolin lifted her hand and gave it a quick salute, “Hello, P4-3.” The droid responded by dipping its head in acknowledgement. Coming within reach of Rey, Aerolin grabbed her arm and pulled her to her feet, “You okay? Sorry, this little one is a teeny bit clumsy.”  
“I’m fine.” Even though Rey had to admit her backside was a little sore. That droid literally came from out of nowhere.  
P4-3 seemed to study Rey up and down, and while it did so, Aero said, “P4-3, this is Rey. Rey, this is P4-3. She’s the head astromech of the Moceka Graveyard.”  
“Moceka Graveyard?”  
“That’s where we’re going.”  
“What? Why?” Rey did not want to go to a graveyard, but Aero went ahead and told her,  
“You’ll see when we get there,” and with that, she gave P4-3’s head a whack. Right when she did, the droid’s head spun, and she zoomed away from the two women. Once again, she came at Rey from behind and crashed into her legs. Right when she did, her square body turned into a robotic basket, and the young woman landed on her backside in it. To prevent herself from falling, she held her arms out to her sides. Aero hitched a ride on another P4 unit, and once aboard, the astromechs escorted the two to the Moceka (Moe-che-ka) Graveyard.

  
The graveyard sat at the base of a hill under the village. Just as the name suggested, it was a graveyard, but this graveyard wasn’t a people graveyard. It was a ship graveyard. Under the light of the enormous moon, a graveyard of ships stretched out a good twenty miles in an enormous field. Ships in this graveyard included Star Destroyers, TIE Fighters, X-Wings, A-Wings, and even a few Mon Calamari Cruisers. A huge battle must’ve taken place here at one point. Rey could not believe what she was looking at. Now she knew why Phonolukamy’s nickname was the “Graveyard of the Galaxy.” “Wow,” she spoke from P4-3’s basket. This was an incredible sight. The P4 unites escorted her and Aero to the graveyard’s start line and dropped them off. Aero’s astromech let her off professionally, but Rey’s accidentally flipped the basket she was sitting in, and she fell on her face. Splat!  
Seeming to gasp, P4-3 beeped apologetic sounds at her, but Rey pushed her away. “This is the Moceka Graveyard?” she asked Aero without even looking at her, and Aero nodded,  
“Yes. This is what you must journey through.” She pulled Rey to her feet and wrapped her arm around her shoulders. With her free hand, she pointed to the mass of wrecked starships, “Travel to the heart of this graveyard. There, you shall find the ship you are looking for.”  
“How will I know it’s the one?”  
“It’s up to you to make that decision, my dear. Now go.” Here, Aero removed her arm from Rey’s shoulders and gave her a small push. The young Jedi tripped over a few rocks, but she caught herself. She peered forward to the fog-covered graveyard and took a deep breath. Nervous, she glanced back to Aero and the P4 units. Nodding, Aero lifted her hand and waved her on. “You need to do this,” she told her. While Rey did not understand why, she nodded back. Perhaps she would learn something about her past in this mysterious graveyard? Maybe? There was only one way to find out. Inhaling one more time, she tightened her grip on her stick. With hair and cape waving in the wind, she stepped into the fog that would lead her to her destiny.

  
Rey walked with caution. She did not know what to expect. Since she didn’t have her lightsaber with her, she did not feel safe. But something inside told this is where she was meant to be – the Moceka Graveyard. Instead of a lightsaber, all she had with her was her stick and Force abilities. She passed Star Destroyers, A-Wings, and X-Wings and studied them up and down. Dust blew in her face, but she protected herself with the hood of her cape. She walked for she did not know how long, and then she stumbled upon a Mon Calamari Cruiser. It sat right next to a Star Destroyer. Both ships had their noses buried in the ground and their tails sticking in the air. Cracks surrounded them, so Rey was careful when she went to get a better look. She considered her thoughts, like what Aero told her to do, and headed for the Star Destroyer. Not the Cruiser. No doubt about it, these ships were the ones she was looking for. The ground shook and cracked under her feet, but she carried on with her journey. Eventually, she made it to the Destroyer and tilted back her head. Rey studied the length of its body and nodded. She dropped her stick and hopped onto the ship’s face. With cape waving in the wind, she started to climb it.

  
Rey climbed just like a monkey. She ignored the pain in her arm – she was just so curious right now. The closer she approached the ship’s engines, the foggier it became. Rey slipped only once, but she caught herself at the last second. Smiling nervously, she kept on climbing. Down below, somebody emerged from the fog and watched her. Aerolin. With her were the two P4 units.  
Interested, the alien woman lifted her hand and grabbed hold of her chin. “How interesting,” she told herself.

  
The climb may have been long and strenuous, but it felt right. When Rey reached the Star Destroyer’s engines, she lugged herself onto the platform. Up here, the fog cleared. Rey saw the rest of the ships in the Moceka Graveyard as well as an ocean in the distance. Even from up here, she could tell the ocean was rough. It may have been because the moon was so close to the planet’s surface. Either that, or the gravity from the Phonolukamy Wormhole affected it. Rey did not know which was which. All she knew was that she was standing on the tail of a Star Destroyer. She took a step closer to the edge of it, to get a better look at the ocean, but right as she did the ground under her feet suddenly gave way, and she fell! A sudden hole had opened under her.

Rey fell. She fell, fell, fell, and slid in a dark tunnel. She tried to grab something, but there was nothing to grab onto (she had made her decision, and there was no turning back). She just continued to slide, and it felt like forever until she finally reached the end of the tunnel. A hole opened in front of her and chucked her into a dark room. Rey’s cape flew over her head and buried her. As quick as a flash, she pulled it back over and let it flop down behind her. She jumped to her feet and took deep breaths. As she did so, she studied the room she was in. Besides just a few old consoles and chairs, there was nothing in the darkness. Then she heard something in front of her. Laughter. Evil laughter. The young woman narrowed her eyebrows and looked in the direction where it came from. She shook with she didn’t know was either panic or excitement when a hooded figure sitting in a throne appeared in front of her. His wrinkled hands tightly clutched the throne’s arms, and he chuckled one more menacing chuckle.  
Then, in a cracked voice, he spoke just two words, “Welcome…Rey.”


	13. Chapter 12: Destiny of the Chosen

“We are entering the strongest gravity field of the wormhole.” Lando explained to Finn in the cockpit of the _Falcon_, “The _Falcon_ is having a bit of trouble navigating through it.”  
“What?! Does that mean we’re all going to be spaghettified?!” Finn’s voice shook with his words.  
“Oh, sit down, kid! Quit being annoying!” With that, Lando pushed the young man back into his seat, “I’ll figure it out.” When he said this, a communication came through on the console.  
Kylo Ren’s voice rang out from the other side of it, “We need to be quick about this. The Beacerika is stalking us. I also feel that Rey is in danger.”  
“Not to worry, kid.” Lando said with a smirk, “We’ll save your girlfriend.”  
“She’s not my girlfriend!” However, Lando could tell Ben was blushing from his Silencer.  
Finn scrunched up his nose when he heard his response and asked, “Kylo Ren likes Rey? Oh, that’s disgusting.”  
“I heard that!” Ben was so annoyed right now. He did not like Rey! He just needed her in one piece if he was going to train her! Punching his flying console, he turned off the communication and prepared his blasters, just in case the Beacerika came from out of nowhere. This also allowed him some time to collect his thoughts.

  
While the figure sitting on the throne did make Rey a bit edgy, at the same time she felt peace around him. She tried her best to not let this show, but it was too late.  
The figure cackled menacingly and told her, “Hm, it looks like we don’t have much to do. You’re already really in-tuned with the Dark side.”  
“You’re not going to turn me.” Rey clenched her fists when she said this. She had to look brave in front of this faceless monster.  
He tightened his grip on his throne’s arms and asked, “Oh, really? How would you react if I told you you’ve _already_ turned?”  
Right when he said that, Rey froze. “What do you mean?” she asked in a nervous voice.

  
The second she asked that, the figure tapped his foot, and Rey felt her feet move by herself. Like what happened in Snoke’s throne room six months earlier, the Dark side user used the Force to pull her uncomfortably close. When he did this, the cloth fell from her arm. Rey tried to move, but she couldn’t. As she edged closer and closer to the man on the throne, her arm cried out in agony. She stopped next to him and shook with both fear and excitement. At this point, she did not know if choosing the Star Destroyer over the Mon Calamari was good or bad. She just followed her instincts.  
The man lifted his wrinkled hand and reached her right arm, “Hm, you’ve got quite the injury here. It’s filled full of Dark side energy. This tells me you used the Dark side to encounter the Beacerika on the island.”  
“How do you know about the Beacerika?” Rey flinched when the man grabbed her arm. He used his abilities to search the injury for any light.  
He felt none, “There is no light left in you. Therefore, you have already turned.”  
“I refuse to believe that.”  
“You don’t need to make this any harder than it already is, child.”  
“I refuse to believe that.” Rey repeated. There was no way she was already part of the Dark side. Like Kylo Ren, this man was just trying to get in her head. Nevertheless, she let out a piercing scream when he suddenly shoved her away. The girl crashed into the floor and performed a backflip. She rose to her knees but again yelled when she learned she could not move her right arm at all. The pain was excruciating.  
It was enough to send a fountain of tears streaming down her cheeks. “So, with that said…” The man rose from his throne and started towards her, “let’s complete your training.”

  
“Rey!” Finn shouted from out of nowhere. Everybody in the _Falcon’s_ cockpit jumped. “We’ve got to get to Phonolukamy!” Finn begged, “She needs us!” The second he said that, a huge blast of gravity hammered the _Falcon_, and it spun out of control, right by Ren’s Silencer.  
He watched it with widened eyes, but then he sensed the Beacerika and shot his blasters into the vast unknown. “Accelerate!” he shouted at the occupants of the drunk _Falcon_, “If we’re going to escape the Beacerika’s grasp, we need to accelerate! I’m sure that’s what Rey did to get out of here!”  
“Right on, Captain!” Lando communicated back, “Buckle in, everybody. We’re going to go fast.”  
Doubt in her voice, Rose asked, “Are you sure we’re not going to be blown to bits?”  
“Rose, I made the Kessel Run with Han Solo in twelve parsecs. This ship can survive anything.” And with that, Lando punched the accelerator. The force of the jump ripped Rose’s fingers from the back of Lando’s chair and tossed her into the common room. He laughed and peered back to her, “I told you to buckle up,” right as the _Falcon_ escaped the wormhole. Back in it, Kylo Ren continued to shoot his blaster into the vast unknown. He never saw the Beacerika, – it camouflaged with the wormhole’s walls – but he did hear it. It never showed itself. It never stalked him, it never preyed on him – it just let him go. Unlike Rey, it did not torture him, but it certainly was in the wormhole with him. Kylo followed the _Falcon_ outside. He punched the accelerator, right as the Beacerika’s face appeared behind him, and leaped out of the wormhole.

Poe pointed at the TIE Silencer and announced,  
“There he is.”  
“Why don’t we just let him rot in space?” asked Finn.  
Behind him, Rose appeared, and she massaged her head, “Yeah, he’s going to destroy us if he gets any closer.”  
“You guys aren’t very hospitable.” Temiri admitted, and Chewie nodded with agreement, “Just give him a chance. He’s looking for Rey, and so are we.”  
“He’s going to hurt her if we let him tag along!” Finn argued, “Trust me, guys, I worked with that monster my whole life.”  
“But keep in mind that we’re all going to Phonolukamy.”

  
Rey was in a pickle. She crawled back when a small army of Droideka droids suddenly emerged at the hooded man’s request. Their built-in forcefields popped up, and they pointed their blasters at the girl. Rey hopped to her feet and pressed her back up against the wall. Her hazel brown eyes rolled over to something sitting on the throne’s arm. A lightsaber.  
The man chuckled menacingly and patted it, “You want this. You know this is the only way you’re going to defeat your enemy. I feel your anger, child. It’s giving you power. I see it now. You, a new Vader. Who needs Kylo Ren when I have you?” Rey clutched her aching head as the Destroyers edged closer to her. Her eyes kept on jumping from the droids to the lightsaber. “Do not fight your urge,” spoke the man, “Give yourself to the Dark side of the Force, and I will make you my apprentice.”  
“Your selfish.” Rey growled, but she continued to shake her head. The temptation. The temptation to Force-grab the lightsaber was too much for her to bare. It took the upper hand over her, and she narrowed her eyebrows. Clenching her teeth, the young woman grabbed the lightsaber with the Force and ignited it. Instead of blue, this lightsaber was red.

  
Kylo Ren’s TIE Silencer and the _Millennium Falcon_ ducked into Phonolukamy’s atmosphere, where Kylo Ren noticed something glittering on the dry ground,  
“Hold it! I see something down there!”  
“What do you see?” Lando asked from the _Falcon_.  
“I think I know what it is, but I’m not sure. We need to get a closer look.”  
“I agree.”  
“Oh, now what?” Finn groaned from his seat, “Don’t tell me we have to travel through another wormhole!”  
“Kylo just sees something, kid.”

Lando followed Kylo to the ground. They lowered their ships’ landing gears and landed with a gentle plop on the dry ground. Dust spewed up when they did, but that was just because Phonolukamy was so dry.  
Lando leaned back in his seat and slapped his hands together, “Land ho. Now that is what I call a ‘perfect landing.’”  
“Sure, but what trap is Kylo Ren leading us into?” Finn wanted to know.  
Temiri rolled his eyes and said, “It’s not a trap.”  
“How do you know?”  
“Come on, Finn. It’s obviously not. Kylo is interested in something. Look.” The hatch of the TIE Silencer dropped and from it emerged Kylo Ren. He headed towards the glitter he noticed from the sky, with a curious look on his face. Rose, Poe, Finn, Chewie, Temiri, C-3PO, R2-D2, and BB-8 followed him, even though Finn still had his doubts about the conflicted man. However, he too became interested when Kylo suddenly stopped and stared at something in front of him. By then, he just had to find out what it was that grabbed his attention.

Finn pulled his friends behind his arm and told them to wait for him. Then, with Kylo on his heels, they came within reach of the glimmer. Finn stopped over it and looked down.  
His jaw dropped, and he fell to his knees. “Rey’s lightsaber,” the young man spoke under his breath. Sure enough, it was Rey’s lightsaber. Then that meant the friends were where the Star Destroyer used to be. This was where she used the Dark side energy to blow it up. Rose, Poe, Chewie, Temiri, and the droids took a step closer to Finn and Kylo Ren so they could get a better look at the discovery. “This is Rey’s lightsaber.” Finn explained.  
“Then she’s got to be here.” Poe spoke. Hand still on lightsaber hilt, Finn slowly rose to his feet. He peered over his shoulder to Kylo Ren and nodded. The young man took a deep breath and approached the Dark side user. Kylo confusingly watched him.  
He almost gasped when the ex-stormtrooper held the lightsaber out to him. “Take us to Rey,” he begged.

  
Kylo said not a word. After feeling Finn’s doubts about him from his Silencer, he now felt a touch of hope and prosperity. A whole minute passed until he finally lifted his shaking, gloved hand and reached for the lightsaber. Kylo wrapped his fingers around its hilt and pulled it away. The second he had it in his hand, Finn backed away from him. Like Luke when Rey returned his lightsaber on Ahch-To he merely stared at the weapon. He stared, stared, and stared until finally…_buzz_. Ren ignited it.

  
As Rey ran the lightsaber through each Destroyer, she yelled in fury. The man laughed from his throne and clapped his hands together. Using the Force, Rey tore off bits and pieces of the wall and threw them into the droids. She swiped her legs under one of the robot’s legs and knocked it to the ground. A repeat of what happened in space, Rey turned extremely violent towards her enemies. She let go of all the fear and anger she has mustered in the past year and a half and used it to help her win. She wanted revenge. She wanted to kill. Her arm tingled with the Dark side energy the Beacerika gave her, giving her even more power. Finally, she lifted her leg and kicked the last Destroyer into the wall.  
She crunched it into a little ball and tossed it across the room like a bowling ball. “Well done, Rey. Well done,” the man cackled from his throne. Lightsaber still ignited, Rey clenched her teeth and glanced at him.  
But then, her face dropped, and she peered down to the red lightsaber she held. “No,” she mumbled under her breath, “Please tell me I did not just do that.” Here, she turned off the lightsaber and glanced at the man, “You can try, sir, but you are never going to turn me to the Dark side.”  
“I expected better from you, young Rey.” This time, the man did not sound proud. Instead, he sounded upset – angry.  
Rey narrowed her eyebrows and glared at him, “You can kill me, but at least I will die trusting the Force.”  
“If that’s what you want.” With each passing second, the man grew angrier and angrier, “Then I will give you the most painful death you have ever experienced.” Rey did not move from where she stood, even when he lifted his hands and shot Force lightning at her. Except, unlike Luke when he confronted Emperor Palpatine all those years ago, the lightning never struck her down.

Rey closed her eyes as she waited for impact, but she opened them when she suddenly heard, “Stop!” behind her. Kylo Ren. With Poe, Finn, and Rose close on his heels, he slid out of the tunnel she fell through and leaped in front of her. The conflicted man ignited her blue lightsaber and held it like a shield in front of him. When he did this, the Force lightning crashed into the blade, but the kyber crystals sucked in the impact. “Run!” Ren yelled at Rey, but she continued to stand frozen. It was as if she was looking into another world.  
Finn came at her from behind, yelling, “Rey!” and grabbed her arm. The girl yelled in pain and tried to pull away, but he held her tightly. At the same time, the four friends sprinted towards an emergency exit hatch in the Destroyer’s side.  
Kylo Ren glared at the man creeping towards him.  
“Nobody touches her, but me!” he shouted, and with that, he lifted his hand. From the engine down, Ren crushed the Star Destroyer like a can, and a pile of debris piled on top of the mysterious, hooded man. He ordered for some of the debris to head towards Finn, Rose, Poe, and Rey. The friends yelled when pieces of the Star Destroyer crashed into their backs and shoved them out of the emergency hatch. They rode the debris like sleds down the face of the wrecked ship. Finn and Rose rode on their fronts, while Rose rode on her backside, and Poe was in a very uncomfortable side position. When the debris sleds hit the desolate landscape below, BOOM! They flipped and chucked the four friends forward. Behind, the Star Destroyer started to fall. Its nose headed straight for Rey, who was too beat up and mind-probed to move. Besides, she could not push herself to her feet with her arm in such bad shape.

Finn pulled Rose and Poe out of danger, but then his eyes landed on his exhausted, injured friend,  
“Rey!” and he hurried towards her. Kylo Ren appeared on the side of the starship, unharmed, and he tumbled down with it. Just before it could squash Rey, Finn grabbed her good arm and dragged her out of the way. Ben waited until the last second, and then he jumped. Rey’s lightsaber swung on his hip as he tallyhoed through the air and landed in a puddle of water not far from the impact zone.

CRASH! The Star Destroyer, tail and all smashed into Phonolukamy’s dry, desolate landscape! The second it did, the ground under the friends’ feet shook, and a fissure appeared under them. Rey gasped when it suddenly split under her, but Finn once again pulled her out of the way before she could tumble down to the lava bed below. Ben sat up in the puddle he landed in, covered in mud, and shook out his head. All around him, fissures appeared, and the ground shook as if it was having a spaz attack. An earthquake just hit the Moceka Graveyard.


	14. Chapter 13 The Rise of Skywalker

With every passing second, the earthquake grew worse, and it started to swallow all of the wrecked ships in the graveyard.  
“Return to the ship!” Finn yelled at his friends, “If we’re going to survive this, we need to return to the ship!”  
“I’ll lead the way!” Rey shouted. She jumped in front of her friends and ran, but she did not get far because a sudden rock broke out of the ground in front of her, and it took Rey with it. She closed her eyes and hung on for dear life.  
Down below, Finn’s eyes popped, and he shouted, “Oh no! Rey!” As the rock rose higher and higher into the atmosphere, Rey felt the gravity lighten up, and before she knew it her legs floated in midair behind her. What a strange planet. On Phonolukamy’s surface, the gravity was strong enough to hold life forms, but up in the sky it quickly dissipated. Another starship fell over like a domino, and this one crushed the rock Rey was holding onto. She gasped as the rock piece slowly floated away from the growing tower and turned upside-down. Her fists turned white as she tightened her grasp on her ride. This was just not her day.  
Another piece of rock that broke off from the impact of the starship floated towards her, and it bumped her debris, which knocked it towards the ground. “Please no.” Rey begged.  
If she hit the main gravity field of the planet again, she would fall, and the rock would squash her like a little bug. “We need to get her down from there.” Finn told Rose and Poe, and they nodded with agreement. Although they had to admit, watching Rey panic and float around was a little bit amusing. Poe and Rose almost wanted to grab a rock of their own and join her in the anti-gravity zone.  
In fact, Rose even lifted her hand and called to the girl, “Are you having fun up there, Rey?”  
“No!” she shouted back as her rock once again turned upside-down, “Make it stop!”  
“I’ll get her,” a voice spoke behind Finn, Rose, and Poe. Within the shaking planet emerged Ben who dragged a broken piece of a starship out from another wreck.  
The second he said that, Poe and Rose instantly glared. “How do we know you’re not going to kidnap her again?” Poe asked with doubt in his voice.  
“I’ll bring her back to the _Falcon_. Just give me a chance.” When he said this, Ben almost sounded desperate, “Besides,” He held up Rey’s lightsaber that he used in the mysterious figure’s throne room, “I have her lightsaber. Somebody has to return it to her.”  
When he said this, the ground split under him, and he quickly jumped over to another piece of land. “We don’t have time for all this childish behavior.” Finn told Poe and Rose in a stern voice, “We need to get to the _Falcon_ soon or else we’re done for.” He shook his head, “No,” and called to Ben, “We’ll bring the _Falcon_ to you and Rey!”  
“Fine! Do whatever you must!” The young, Dark side user waved Poe, Finn, and Rose on. Though doubtful, they paid attention to him.

  
Left behind, he waited until another new rock came bursting out of the ground and used it as a ride to reach the anti-gravity field of Phonolukamy. Once he hit it, he jumped on top of the debris he pulled, and another broken piece of the first rock tower tapped him. Rey, who rose to her hands and knees on her own platform saw him. Now she knew why Phonolukamy was such a dystopian planet and had very limited resources – earthquakes rocked it constantly. Unfortunately, she was right on the line of the anti-gravity field and normal gravity field. While the rock was in the anti-field, she was in the normal field. This was partly because she was upside-down.

  
Rey yelled when she suddenly fell from her ride and dropped towards another Star Destroyer that was stuck in the shaking ground.  
At the sight of her, Ben held out his hand and yelled, “Rey! I need another rock to tap me!” Here, he rapidly searched the area for more floating rock pieces.

  
Rey crashed into the Destroyer’s back. The force of the impact flipped her onto her front, and she rolled down its spine towards its engines like a drunk dancer. However, she managed to grab hold of a sturdy pole that told people they were nearing them.  
The girl peered down to the lava bed below and shook with she did not know was fear or heat. The only thing holding up the Star Destroyer was the small piece of land under it that was still intact, but it started to crack with the force of the earthquake.  
Rey only said one thing, “Uh oh,” when she realized it was starting to slide through the hole that just opened up under it. It looked like the Titanic during its last moments of life. As an attempt to save herself, Rey clenched her teeth and closed one eye. She tried to lug herself up the pole, but it was difficult because of her arm. No matter how hard she tried, she could not do it. As a result, her fingers slipped, and she started back down the Destroyer’s spine. This time, she managed to wrap her arms around one of the engines, but now her legs hung under her towards the lava. Sweating and out of breath, Rey peered up the length of the sinking Destroyer and tried to come up with a solution to her problem. She did not want to incinerate. She was too young to die. The lightsaber the mysterious, hooded figure gave her in the throne room bounced on her hip as she again attempted to climb back up.

“Look out!” a voice suddenly shouted above her. Kylo Ren. Another floating rock finally hit him, but this caused him to reenter the normal gravity field of the planet. CRASH! He crashed into Rey and ripped her straight from the Destroyer’s engine. Both Force-sensitive youths landed on top of a rock sled that broke off from the wall surrounding the lava river and slid down it like children snow sledding. Rey rested on Ben’s back and held onto his shoulders for dear life. They exchanged quick glances at one another and yelled at the same time. Above, the Star Destroyer finished its journey through the hole, and it too started to fall…right in the direction of Rey and Ben. Hot potato. They were so dead. Or were they? Nope.

Without even thinking, Rey closed her eyes and held her hands up towards the falling starship. Right at her command, it suddenly stopped and floated in midair. Ben also closed his eyes, and he held his arms out to his sides. Under he and Rey, the rock sled also stopped moving and froze. They now looked like paper glued to a wall.

Never in her life has Rey lifted a Star Destroyer, or a starship in general, so it was understandable why it made her both physically and mentally exhausted.  
The only thing that got her through the strain were the words, “Lifting rocks,” but a Star Destroyer was nothing like a rock. Teeth clenched, she started to push the Destroyer back towards surface so it wouldn’t crush her and Ren, but she struggled. All around her and him, rocks fell into the lava river below.  
The Destroyer started to slip from Rey’s Force grab, and she yelled at Ben, “I can’t hold it for much longer!”  
“If we die, we die together!” Ben shouted back. He too was struggling to keep the rock sled from moving again. Who knew the Force was so mentally exhausting? Rocks continued to crash into the lava. Not only that, but a second earthquake shook the whole river. In just a matter of time, it was going to send a slew of lava into Phonolukamy’s atmosphere like an erupting volcano. At the same time, Rey and Ben yelled in both frustration and exhaustion, but then something emerged from the top of the wall and zoomed down towards them. The _Millennium Falcon_.

“I see them!” Lando shouted from the pilot seat, “Over there, Chewie!” He pointed Chewie over to the living papers glued to the rock wall’s side.  
Finn leaped up from his seat and shouted, “I’ll open the hatch!” He took off running and passed Temiri who stood in the corner of the cockpit with his arms crossed. Strangely, he looked very angry. Why? Well, it had to do something with trust and disobeying orders.

As the _Falcon_ edged closer to Rey and Ben, Ben peered up to Rey and announced,  
“Here comes the _Falcon_! I’ll get you on it!”  
“I can’t!” Rey shouted with a shake of her head, “I have to hold up this Destroyer, or else we’re done for!”  
A blast of wind blew her hair out of its three buns, but it also smacked into the starship’s side and caused her to tip forward. “Rey!” Ben shouted. He wasted no time. The second the _Falcon_ appeared next to him and her and the hatch opened to reveal Finn, he took Rey’s place. With one hand, Ben grabbed the girl and shoved her off the rock sled. His free hand caught the Destroyer instead. Rey yelled as she fell onto the _Falcon_’s top, but Finn caught her before she could tumble to her doom.  
He started to drag her into the hatch, but his friend fought him. “No!” she screamed with tears streaming down her cheeks, “Ben!” It almost was too obvious she was in a state of shock and pure terror. Before things could get too out of hand, Finn dropped her into the _Falcon_. Poe, who stood at the base of the hatch, caught her, and he wrapped his arms around her body.

Back on top, Finn next held his hand out to Ben, but the Dark side user shook his head.  
“No,” he calmly spoke as sweat trickled down his temples, “As long as she’s safe, that’s all that matters.”  
“But, Ben! We’re in this together! The Resistance never leaves a partner behind!”  
“I don’t care. I feel the light spewing from me. Give it to her. Do not let her turn. She doesn’t deserve it.”  
“Ben, please! I know you can do this! Just jump!”  
“If I let go of this starship, it is going to fall and crush me, so therefore, I have no choice. You need to go. Return to Jakku. That is where destiny will meet the future.”  
“Return to…?” but Finn said no more because the whole area surrounding the _Falcon_ shook. The river. It was on the brink of erupting.  
Like Rey before him, Ben also felt the Star Destroyer slipping from his Force grab, but he tried his best to keep it from falling. “Phonolukamy’s changed me,” he told Finn as his arms started to shake from the starship’s weight, “Just as it’s changed her. Rey is the future of this galaxy. She is a descendant of evil and the only one who can take out the Emperor. Go. I know this is the right thing to do.”  
“But, Ben…”  
“I’m not going to ask you again!” By then, Finn had no choice but to leave the Dark side user behind. The tone in his voice told him he was not joking, and he slowly nodded to show that he understood his plea, even though he did not entirely understand what he meant when he said Rey was a “descendant of evil.” The young man took a deep breath and glanced at Ben Solo one last time. He then disappeared back in the _Falcon’s_ hatch.

The spaceship started to leave, and Ben watched it. He closed his eyes as he accepted his fate and felt the shaking lava river under him, but he opened them when something came at him from the corner of his eye. Dodging rocks as it flew, it drew closer and closer, and a bright light shone on Ben’s face. As soon as it did, BOOM! The _Falcon_ soared out of the pit, and behind it a slew of lava exploded into the atmosphere! The legendary ship barely made it out of there unscathed. As the ground caved in behind them where the Moceka Graveyard used to be, it headed towards space…away from danger, and onto the next adventure.

“Finn! You’re okay, bud!” At the sight of Finn hopping down from the ladder’s last step, Poe hurried to him and pulled him into a hug. Finn returned it, but he said not a word. He could not believe what Kylo Ren just did for Rey – what he did for the whole Resistance. He spared them.  
When Poe let go, Rose was the next one to approach Finn, and she too pulled him into a hug, “Finn! Thank goodness!” She gave him a quick kiss and adjusted the jacket he wore, “Your jacket is covered in dirt! What an ugly sight! Wait.” Her eyes started to roam, as well as Poe’s, “Where’s Kylo Ren?” Still, Finn did not speak. He couldn’t. All he did was close his eyes and lower his head. The message quickly got across to Rose and Poe, and their jaws dropped. Chewie, who appeared in the hallway with them from the cockpit, growled sadly.  
Off to the side, 3PO also lowered his head. “Oh dear, oh dear,” he spoke in a sad voice. BB-8 and R2-D2 let out a round of sad-sounding beeps to illustrate their own grief. Rose lowered her head as she tried to let the message sink in. Did this really just happen? Poe took her shoulder and comfortably rubbed it. At the same time, he, Rose, and Finn glanced over to a room further down the hall. There was Rey. She stood with her back propped up against the wall and her own head lowered. Rubbing her nose, she slipped into the room and shut the door behind her.

The Moceka Graveyard was no more. When the earth finally calmed, it was nothing but a bunch of broken rocks and leftover scraps from the ships that used to inhabit it. Dust and ash blocked out the Sun, and it grew significantly colder. However, something moved under a pile of rocks where the pit of lava used to be. Off to the side and further down the plain was a shadow, but it was hard to make out what it was a shadow of. One would have to get closer to it.

Only a few seconds later, a hand shot out of the pile of rocks, but since the area was so dark now, it was hard to tell who the hand belonged to. The adventure was not over. Not yet. Something waited in the distance, but was that something the shadow or not? Who was Rey? Why did she have to return to Jakku? What waited for her there? Who was the Beacerika? What did Kylo mean when he said she was a “descendant of evil?” The answers would come, but only when the time was right. This was just the beginning – the beginning of The Rise of Skywalker.


	15. Chapter 14 Rey's Supernova

Rey was absolutely crushed. She felt like a complete utter failure. Ben just sacrificed himself to save her, to save the Resistance, and she did nothing about it. Why did everything have to happen to her? She moped in her room and contemplated whether or not she should leave the Resistance for good. There was no light left in her – the hooded figure told her so – so therefore, she was putting everybody in danger, including her friends back on Supher. For the rest of the day, Lando Calrissian tried to find a town that had a mechanic in it for the _Millennium Falcon_. He wanted it checked out to see if it could make one more trip through the Phonolukamy Wormhole, but to no avail. Towns on the planet were so spread out. By nightfall, the ship landed in a field next to a small forest. Lando told everybody they’d continue their journey in the morning. Chewie went outside and whipped up a fire for dinner, while Finn tried to pull Rey out from her room in the _Falcon_.

He knocked on the door and said in a gentle voice, “Rey? Dinner is ready.”

“I’m not hungry,” she said from the other end of the door. “But, Rey.”

“Finn! I’m not hungry! Just leave me alone! Please.” Rey begged. How rude.

Finn just let her be. Rey had a lot going on right now, and she needed some time alone. Therefore, he left the door and joined Temiri, Lando, Rose, Poe, Chewie, C-3PO, R2, and BB-8 outside for dinner. Temiri, Lando, Rose, Poe, and Chewie sat around the fire, and each person had a plate of food. They saved spots for Finn and Rey. 3PO sat on a rock behind them, while R2 and BB-8 were in a charging station.

Poe, Rose, Lando, and Chewie turned their heads when they heard Finn creep up on their backs. “Well, how is she?” Lando wanted to know.

Sitting down, Finn picked up a plate of his own and admitted, “She doesn’t want to be disturbed. She is absolutely crushed.”

Rose, who sat next to the ex-stormtrooper, lowered her plate and said, “Poor Rey.”

“Poor Rey?!” Temiri asked in an angry voice. Rose, Finn, and Poe jumped when he suddenly chucked his plate to the ground, “None of this would be happening right now if you just listened to Leia! She clearly said that you weren’t supposed to interfere with her training, yet you did!”

“The kid has a point.” Lando used a dead leaf as a napkin and set his own plate down next to his ankle, “I thought we were going to let her turn to the Dark side.”

“As if!” Poe crushed his plate in between his hands and threw it in the fire, “I can’t even imagine what would’ve happened if that hideous figure on the throne took her away!”

“It’s her destiny.” Temiri spoke in an angry voice, “Rey is a descendant of evil. Ben would not be gone if you guys just listened to Leia. It’s your own fault that we are failing with our mission.”

“Ugh!” Back in the _Falcon_, Rey chucked her new lightsaber to the other end of the room. On her bed, she pulled her knees up close and sniffed, “Ben’s gone, and its all my fault. I’m such a horrible person. The Resistance does not deserve somebody like me.” Wrapping her cape around her body, she hopped to the ground and came within reach of the lightsaber she just threw. The young woman stopped over it and looked down. A few tears splashed onto its hilt as she kneeled and picked it up. She had to leave. That’s what she had to do. She could not bare to put her friends in anymore danger. With this in mind, she attached the lightsaber to her belt and opened the door to her room. Rey headed over to the _Falcon’s_ ramp and started down it, but she stopped at the sight of her friends sitting around the fire. Just seeing them, another lump formed in her throat. Her face hurt as she tried to hold back tears, but it was impossible. She was too depressed. Rey refused to say goodbye to her friends. She turned on her heel and again wrapped her cape around her body. As the left the _Millennium Falcon_ and her friends, she said just one thing, “I don’t belong here.”

Aerolin hummed as she whipped up a pile of stew in her hut’s kitchen.

As she worked, she set the table for her guest. “Where is that boy?” she asked herself when she saw he had not come in for dinner, but then something came to mind. Aero grabbed a cane and used it to support her balance as she stepped outside to Phonolukamy’s dry, rocky landscape. Her eyes landed on a hill, where a figure kneeled.

Ben Solo watched the sunset, with P4-3 next to him. He rubbed dirt off her eye, and then his dark eyes landed back on the sun.

With the help of her cane, Aero climbed the hill and joined him at the top of it, “What are you doing up here, lad? As thanks for saving your life, I thought we were going to have dinner together.” Sure enough, it was Aerolin who saved Ben from the Moceka Earthquake. The bright light he saw from the rock sled belonged to her ship, _The Robin Hood_. She went and got it with P4-3 when she learned Poe, Rose, Finn, and Ben were going to chase down Rey. After all, the space heroes ran into her on their way to her village. Ben sensed Rey was nearby, so he volunteered to go get her, but he could not do it without Rose, Poe, and Finn inviting themselves to join him.

They merely said, “Rey is our friend too,” and followed him. This meant that the hand that shot up from the pile of rocks after the earthquake did not belong to Ben, for Aerolin already saved him then. Who did it belong to then? That was a good question for another time.

Ben did not look at Aero.

Instead, he continued to stare at the sunset and pat down P-43, “She’s somewhere out there. Now that I am alone, this is the only time I can chase her down without anybody getting in my way.” As he said this, Aero also peered out to the sunset and field he was looking at.

She nodded, “I understand,” and got down on her knees, “Come here, my boy.” She gestured for Ben to join her, and he did. P-43 rolled up on him from behind. Looking Ben straight in the eyes, Aero patted the dry soil between her and him and ordered, “Put your hand here.” Ben was nervous, so he at first did not do it, but Aero forced him to. She gently took his hand and pulled the glove off. She set it down on the small section of soil between her and him and spoke in a wise voice, “What do you feel?” as she rested her hand on top of his.

“Light.” Ben spoke in a shaky voice, but it balanced out the longer he rested his hand on the soil, “I feel light. Something is coming to life under us.”

“Do you feel balance?”

“Yes.”

“That is the Force calling out to you.” Right as Aero said this, a green stem with two green leaves rose out of the ground in-between Ben’s fingers. Removing his hand, he and Aero placed their hands on their thighs and admired the newborn plant. Aerolin peered into Ben’s eyes and told him, “There is still hope, just as there is hope this planet will one day become the beautiful, green planet it used to be. You must do what your heart tells you is the right thing. That is the beauty of the Force.” Next to Ben, P-43 bumped his side and beeped.

He glanced at her and asked, “Are you ready, P-43?” and P-43 nodded excitedly. For the first time ever, a small smile crept across Ben’s face. He rested his hand on top of P-43’s box-shaped body and added, “Let’s go save Rey.”

Cold wind blasted Rey as she stumbled across another cracked, desolate landscape surrounded by tall rock towers. She tightened her grip on her cape as she tried to stay warm. Her lips cracked and started to bleed. The wind only picked up speed and caused a dust storm. Rey fell to her knees, and her lightsaber plopped down next to her. Her tummy rumbled with hunger, and her throat felt dry. She had to find some water, but there was no sign of a watering hole in the desolate landscape. This frustrated her and made her a little bit mad. A glare stretched across her face. When she went to pick up the lightsaber, the second her fingertips touched it, her hazel brown eyes suddenly flashed a quick yellow, but it vanished when she attached it to her belt again.

The dust storm trapped her. Coughing, Rey rose to her feet and covered her nose and mouth with her hand. Her arm stung as her injury sucked the dust in. She struggled through it, but the force of the wind almost knocked her off her feet. A dust cloud came to life in front of her, and she gasped when she recognized the figure in it. It was the same, hideous man who tortured her in the Star Destroyer. Rey’s supernova stood directly in front of her.

The man circled the frightened, conflicted girl, and told her,

“Come with me, child, for you are all I have left.”

“Why won’t you leave me alone?”

Rey tried to punch the dust man, but he dodged her fist and appeared behind her, “The power you hold exceeds even mine. The galaxy needs a new leader, an Empress, and you are next in line.”

“What are you talking about?”

“I will take you Jakku, where you shall learn more.” When he said this, the man leaped in front of Rey again before she could run away. He offered her his hand, and she studied it, “You do want to know who you are, right? At this point, it is only necessary for you to join me. A conflicted girl like you – I will show you your place in the galaxy.” Just seeing the man’s hand, Rey remembered Snoke’s throne room when Ben did the exact same thing. But this time, her mind wandered to another place. She seemed to fall under a trance. Was the man controlling her, or was she controlling herself? The wind howled all around the two individuals as the girl lifted her injured arm and reached for the man’s hand. Just before she could change her mind, he snatched her wrist and pulled him close to her. Shaking from fear, the girl tried to release herself, but he held her tightly. “You’ve made your choice,” the man hissed in her ear.

A second dust cloud appeared behind Rey, and she peered over her shoulder to it. Her body continued to tremble, and she whimpered when she saw the cloud was creeping towards her. But after a bit, she nodded. This was her destiny. She knew it was.

As Leia said back on Supher, “Destiny is not a horse. You must learn to trust yourself.” Rey knew she would find a way out of this. She was Rey. With this in mind, she stopped fighting the man and closed her eyes. He cackled as the dust cloud devoured both him and her and whisked them away from Phonolukamy.

“I knew we never should have left Rey behind!” Finn kicked the _Falcon’s_ wall after realizing that Rey was no longer in her room.

Next to him, Lando rested his elbow on it and admitted, “Well, she certainly does not like to stay in one place. Don’t you agree, Temiri?” Temiri, though, did not answer him.

He felt a great disturbance in the Force, which caused him to stare blankly ahead from where he sat in the common room. “This should not be happening,” he whimpered.

Finn overheard him, “What’s happening?”

“We need to get to Jakku as soon as possible,” was Temiri’s answer. “What’s happening?” Finn repeated, but Temiri said no more.

He got up from his seat and returned to the_ Falcon’s_ cockpit. “Do you feel it too?” he asked Chewie who also seemed to stare into space. Nodding, the Wookie let out a low, sad growl. Temiri took his furry arm and peered into his face, “We can still fix this. Jakku is where we will get all the answers to our questions. Then and only then will we form alliances with friends, allies, and enemies. A battle is just around the corner. I can feel it. This battle will determine the fate of the Resistance; nay, the whole galaxy.”

Drained of power, no longer did Rey feel cold. She felt heat, which told her there was a change in scenery. Sitting up, she saw that she was resting on a huge dune. Where was Phonolukamy’s cracked, dry landscape? What happened to the Lukaemians who combined farming with machinery? Just as the man told her, she was back on Jakku, but he trapped her in the dune. Rey clenched her teeth and tried to free her buried hands and feet in the sand, but she failed. She sat in a very uncomfortable position, with her knees bent and her arms behind her.

The hooded man returned, but this time his appearance was in the form of a sand figure, not a dust cloud. It was similar to the sand figures Rey saw during her vision on Supher.

The man brushed by her right arm and floated in front of her like a ghost, “Now that we are here, I have a mission for you.”

“What mission?” Rey narrowed her eyebrows to an angry position, “You can’t keep me trapped forever. I can easily use the Force to pull my arms and legs free. I did it when Kylo Ren captured me, so there is no way I can’t do it again.”

“Oh, really? Sorry to disappoint you child, but…” Rey’s supernova shook his head and told her something that caused her to turn into a black hole. It trapped her in her own failure, “you no longer have your Force abilities.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I know what you guys are thinking. "What the heck is going on?" I love to keep you on the edge of your seats. That is one of my favorite things about this story. Honestly, I am also on the edge of my seat, especially since I am now diving into the meat and potatoes of the plot. This is officially the end of the Phonolukamy section, but it does not mean the story is over. It just means I am a little over halfway through it. Since I know I only have two sections left, I promise I will continue to keep you guys interested. Slowly but surely, I will answer all the questions you may have.


	16. Chapter 15 Tesseract

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Welcome to Part 3 of my version of “The Rise of Skywalker!” This section's focus is on Jakku and what happens to Rey and Kylo Ren on it. Lots of questions will be answered during this part, which will set the stage for the final showdown in Part 4. I am going to really dive into the meat and potatoes of the plot in this part, so hopefully you are ready for an insane journey through the desert planet of Jakku! I know I am!

Rey’s whole face whitened to the point she almost looked like a ghost.

“What do you mean?” she asked the hooded man hovering in front of her.

“I took your abilities away when I transported you here.”

“Why?” Rey had an extremely tough time believing the man stripped her powerless. Then again, she returned to the question of why she felt drained in the first place. What if the man really did take away her Force abilities? Just thinking about it made her cringe.

To answer her question, the man used the Force to free her hands and feet from the sand. He dragged the powerless girl to the edge of the dune and hovered next to her.

Lifting his hand, he pointed across the dry, sandy landscape, and explained, “Across the dunes, a new power awaits you. Find it, and I will return your Force abilities.”

“What power?” However, Rey never received an answer because the dune suddenly broke under her feet, and she rolled with it as it fell. She landed in a heap at the foot of it and quickly moved out of the way of the falling, sandy waterfall. When everything calmed down, she no longer saw the hooded figure. He’d vanished.

Here she was. All alone in the dunes of Jakku. She could run away, but at the same time, Rey was curious about the “new” power the hooded man mentioned. What power waited for her out there? Would it help her find her place in the galaxy? Rey was trapped in her own failure. What happened with Kylo Ren crushed her. Who was she? If she sought out the power the man mentioned, would she finally learn her true destiny?

“Destiny is not a horse. You must learn to trust yourself.” With so many unanswered questions swarming through her brain, Rey pulled up the hood of her cape and wrapped it tightly around her body. Putting one foot in front of her, she started forward and in the direction of her destiny.

Rey did not get far before she collapsed from dehydration in the sand. She felt weak. She couldn’t move, and she shivered with pain as her arm cried out in agony. She knew it was infected. Dust from the dust storm on Phonolukamy was in it. Rey told herself she might as well just let herself die. There was no light left in her. The Resistance did not deserve a monster like her. They deserved somebody like Finn and Kylo Ren. Ben was gone, though, and Rey knew it was her fault. At least, that was the message going through her head.

Faith shaken, she reached for her lightsaber and pulled it off her belt. She ignited it, buzz, and the red glow shone on her face. Her fist turned white as she tightened her grip on it. Then she saw something in the everlasting heat wave. A Luggabeast, and a figure sat on top of it. Rey tried to yell at it, but there was sand in her dry throat. Using only her left hand, she clenched her teeth and dragged herself towards the Luggabeast. Something happened to her on Phonolukamy, but she was scared to find out what. Just like she predicted, she was not the Rey she remembered.

As she lied there, something crossed her mind.

Luke’s words, “This is your fight.” Just hearing them again, Rey reminded herself that she was Rey. She’s survived her whole life on Jakku. She was a fighter - no, she was a scavenger - no, she was Rey. Just like Leia mentioned with Luke, she has had her falls, but the most important thing was getting back up. Rey could not let Jakku - nay, the Dark side of the Force kill her. She had to fight, and she had to win. Closing her eyes, she pushed herself to her feet and peered forward to the Luggabeast. A blast of hot, Jakku air blew her cape, and she peered down to the Dark side weapon she held in her hand.

“No more.” Rey told herself. Then, just like that, she brought back her hand and chucked the weapon. Chuck! It soared through the sky and landed in a dune further away. “I am not going to turn to the Dark side,” the young woman said out loud.

Unfortunately, only a few seconds after she said that, a wave of excruciating pain overtook her entire body. Screaming, she fell to the ground on her side. The man. He was punishing her. Rey had never felt this much pain in her entire life. It even beat her arm injury. She continued to scream as the man turned excessively violent on her.

The Luggabeast heard her distressed cries, as well as its rider, and it quickly turned its head in the direction of all the noise. At the sight of the young woman in trouble, the Luggabeast’s rider urged it forward, yelling, “Come on! She needs us!” in a female voice. With that, they hurried in the direction of Rey.

The man continued to punish her. With eyes closed, she rolled onto her back and held her arms out to her sides, “Someone, please! He’s killing me!” As she yelled that, the Luggabeast made it to her. Right when it did, the figure sitting atop it leaped off, and she held her hand out to the invisible force punishing the girl. The last thing Rey saw before she slipped into darkness was a bright green light, and it sliced the air above her. Then just like that, she entered a state of near-death unconsciousness.

Kylo Ren did not expect the trip back through the Phonolukamy Wormhole to be fun, but here he was. Rey needed him. The Force told him she was back on Jakku and a dark force was punishing her, so that’s where he was headed now. Aerolin loaned him The Robin Hood, since the earthquake swallowed his TIE Silencer whole. With a serious look on his face, he steered for the mouth of the wormhole.

Up above, P4-3 suddenly burst into a frenzy of panicked beeps. “P4-3, what’s wrong?” Ren asked, but he gasped when The Robin Hood screeched to an unexpected stop. This threw him into its control panal, but he quickly shook out his head. “What did we hit?” he asked P4-3, but he stopped when he heard something outside. A deep, familiar growl. A shadowy face appeared in front of The Robin Hood, and its eyes glowed red. The Beacerika had caught Kylo Ren.

Both man and creature stared at one another for a good long while. Neither of them spoke or even made a move on one another. They just stared.

Finally, Ben asked, “Do you feel it too?” and the Beacerika nodded. “A dark force expanding across the galaxy,” Ben continued, “and Rey is between it all.” He was half right but also half not. Why? The Beacerika knew the answer, but it was not going to tell him right here and now...not until Ben proved himself worthy to know. And the only way to do that...was through a test.

What was this place? Was this the Otherworld? Was Rey dead? At this point, she had no idea whether she was or not. All she knew was that she was floating in outer space, and next to her was the creature who injured her in the first place - the Beacerika. She looked over her shoulder to it but gasped when she saw it vanished.

When it appeared again, it floated in front of her like a kite let loose. Gulping, Rey lifted her right hand and held it out to the creature. She closed her eyes and looked away as she waited.

The Beacerika studied her hand. It felt the girl’s aura. While there was a lot of dark in her, there was also light. At the end of the day, Rey was just a conflicted child trying to find her place in the galaxy. The Beacerika knew this. It felt Rey’s light, as well as her darkness, and moved closer to her. She waited for a little bit longer, and then she felt something. She felt a lump, as well as skin. The Beacerika had its forehead up against the palm of her hand. No longer did it feel like an enemy, but an ally instead.

It told Rey there was still hope. Even though the hooded figure forcefully pulled her to the Dark side, she was not yet an official part of it. Rey had to find a way to change her own destiny. That was the Beacerika’s message, and it stuck with her even as she woke up from the confusing dream. The first thing she saw was the face of her rescuer.

The Beacerika, with one last roar, disappeared in the shadows of the Phonolukamy Wormhole. Ben held his breath when The Robin Hood suddenly jerked and started upward. He tried to control the ship, but nothing worked. Even P4-3 couldn’t get anything working, and she was P4-3. The Beacerika was the one controlling the ship.

It led Ben and P4-3 to another section of the Phonolukamy Wormhole - a section filled full of Dark side energy - the Beacerika’s home. If Ben truly was part of the Light side now, then he should be able to handle the tunnel like it was nothing. He should be able to take out whatever waited for him in there, but there was only one way to know for sure. He had to risk returning to the Dark side of the Force.

The Beacerika let him go. Using its abilities, it dropped The Robin Hood into the mouth of the tunnel, where Ben’s destiny awaited, but only his Light side energy would determine whether he is successful or not. This here...was the Beacerika’s test.


	17. Chapter 16 The Beacerika’s Test

“How bad is it?” Rey asked the towering figure over her, who carried a case full of medical supplies, “Do I need to soak it in bacta?” She was asking about her arm and whether or not she was going to lose it. She refused to look at it as the woman started working on it. They were in a small hut that served as a rest stop for anyone traveling through the deserts of Jakku. The woman’s Luggabeast waited for the two outside, and it chomped down on a pile of metal.

The woman, who had long, purple hair, blue eyes, and wore a pink, rubber space suit, examined Rey’s wound and chuckled,

“Well, it definitely is not a pretty sight. You really got smacked here.”

“Am I going to lose it?” Rey hated to ask that, but she had to know.

Chuckling again, the woman used a special tool to pull the dust out of the wound - the dust was what caused the infection, and answered, “I don’t think so, but you’ll definitely have a scar. I think you should soak it in bacta, just to speed up the healing process. You see,” She tied a new cloth around Rey’s arm and stood up, “there’s a village not far from here that specializes in medical technologies. It’s near the Sinking Sands in the East. Go there, and you shall have your arm properly taken care of.”

“Okay.” Rey nodded to show she understood. She dragged herself over to a tray of food and water the woman whipped up for while she was unconscious, and ate like she has not eaten in a whole month. At least she was eating again. The woman soaked her with water when she rescued her to cool her down, so Rey’s clothes were a little damp. She concluded that her work here was done and nodded to herself as she started to leave.

“Wait!” Rey stopped eating when she saw her leaving, and she held her hand out to her. Hearing her, the older woman peered over her shoulder to the younger one. Rey pushed herself to her feet, but she swayed a bit, for she was not completely healed from her dehydration. However, she managed to ask, “Who are you?” The woman smiled at her question and nodded.

Here was her answer, “I am Aerolin,” and just like that, she stepped out of the building, leaving a very confused Rey behind.

Ben Solo yelled as he and P4-3 caught the gravitational field of the tunnel the Beacerika dropped them in. He could not see for the life of him. Even P4-3 had trouble navigating The Robin Hood.

She beeped at Ben, and he nodded, “I know, P4-3, I know. We don’t know what’s waiting for us in here.” He felt the Dark side of the Force. He felt the Beacerika’s test, and for a moment he felt like he was home. Conflicting thoughts bubbled through his brain like lava in a volcano, and he rapidly shook his head to clear the voices within it.

P4-3 suddenly let out a round of warning beeps, for she sensed something coming towards The Robin Hood. Ben did to, and he quickly pulled the trigger for The Robin Hood’s guns. He heard a loud break and dodged as pieces of a meteoroid suddenly flew by the ship. P4-3 tucked her head in her body like a turtle to protect herself. Ben spun The Robin Hood through the mass of meteoroids that the Phonolukamy Wormhole swallowed. The Beacerika was proud of him. Ben was doing well. What influenced him to keep moving forward were thoughts about Rey. If not for Rey, he did not think he would be here now. His eyes landed on a bright light as the end of the tunnel drew near, and he quickly spun out of the way of another meteoroid. What he saw now were lights from stars that the wormhole stripped from them. He yelled as a gravitational pull smashed into his ship and knocked him back. This was the main part of the Beacerika’s test. The starlight blocked the wormhole’s exit, a white hole, and Ben had to prove himself to them.

He again tried to push his way through the blockade, but the stars once again pushed him back. Ben spun out of control in the space tunnel, with P4-3 screeching, but he did not give up. Rey needed him, and he needed her. Therefore, he kept on blowing up the annoying meteoroids and trying to get past the stars. When he saw that he once again was not going to succeed, he steered The Robin Hood upward and towards the wormhole’s ceiling.

P4-3’s head spun as he kept on trying to get past the blockade. “Let me through!” Ben yelled at the stars, “I have a friend who needs me!” Another push back, “Please!” and then another, “I need her!” Right when Ben said that, the stars stopped playing Robin Hood Baseball with him. Now Ben just floated in the Phonolukamy Wormhole. “Please,” he begged the stars in a calm voice, “I feel the light in me, but she’s losing hers. If she loses too much, she’s going to die. I know who she is, and I know she’s struggling. She needs help, and I’m the only one who can save her. I’m the only one who can save the Descendant of Evil.”

Poe, Finn, Rose, Lando, Temiri, and the droids had not left Phonolukamy because Lando was worried the Falcon could not make it back through the Wormhole. Therefore, they continued their journey through the dystopian planet and eventually stumbled upon a small town, Arcean (R-key-in). It had to be one of the ugliest towns ever. Then again, it was on Phonolukamy.

Lando landed the Falcon in an open area between some mud-built houses and shut off the engine.

“Here we are,” he told his partners.

“Here?” Rose asked, “What’s ‘here?’”

“My friend,” was Lando’s answer, “He’ll check the Falcon for us.”

“What ‘friend?’” Rose looked very confused.

“Just bear with me. I know what I’m doing.” With that, Lando hopped out of his seat and led the way out the Falcon.

His cape waved behind him when he reached the cold, outside atmosphere of Phonolukamy. The others followed him and cautiously examined their surroundings. Everyone was curious about this “friend” Lando mentioned. Lukaemian children stopped playing, and they watched the unusual-looking humans. Unusual because they did not have blue skin and eyes.

However, a few of the adult Lukaemians recognized Lando, and they called to him, “Hey! If it isn’t Lando Calrissian!”

“My friends!” Lando announced. He hurried away from Finn, Rose, Poe, Temiri, and the droids and hurried over to the group of men who greeted him. They were an interesting bunch. They were all Lukaemians who wore ragged clothes and had buff bodies. They sat around a fire behind the town’s casino.

There was one man in particular in the bunch who highly intrigued Lando. He was the most muscular and stood about seven feet tall. Finn, Rose, Temiri, and Poe felt tiny compared to him, but Lando could care less.

He held his arms out to the man and shouted, “Buddy!” The man mimicked him.

Then he snatched Lando off the ground and pulled him into a tight hug, “How ya doing, dude? I haven’t seen you in what feels like forever!” Lando’s eyes popped. He felt like his spine was about to crack - the man hugged him so tightly.

When he finally put him down, Lando turned to his confused partners, “Dudes, this is my friend. The great Yamo.”

“Yamo?” Finn cringed when he remembered Lando mentioning Yamo in the Falcon. Why has the legendary Lando Calrissian lead him and his friends to a gangster? What was he hiding? Whatever it was, Finn definitely felt like something was off with the veteran pilot.

What the heck just happened to Rey? Did she really just hear that? What I’m the world was going on? Was her rescuer Aerolin? If so, how did she get here from Phonolukamy? What in the world was going on? As Rey finished her meal, she tried to make sense of what she just heard. If that was indeed Aerolin, why did she leave her all alone? Yet, here was another question. How did she change her form from a Lukaemian to another alien?

Rey had to know. “Aero!” she shouted as she finished her meal. However, when she stepped outside to the desert planet, she didn’t see the woman anywhere. Something was waiting for her, though. The Luggabeast.

Why did the woman abandon it? What was going on here? Gulping, Rey fixed her eyes on the creature, and it returned her stare. She picked up a staff that seemed to appear from out of nowhere next to her with one hand, and reached out with her other one. Rey and the Luggabeast approached one another, and Rey set her palm down on the nose of its helmet. The second she touched the beast, a great blast of wind blew through the desert. It blasted Rey’s buns as well as her cape. From out of nowhere, the Luggabeast tossed her into its back. Yelping, Rey wrapped her arms around its neck to keep balance. She had no idea what was happening here, and she wondered if she ever would. Once it made sure she was nice and snug on top of it, the Luggabeast startedbforward and headed into the arid environment of Jakku.

To Ben’s amazement, the stars moved aside and opened up the remaining path of the Phonolukamy Wormhole. What the? He did it! But how? Did this mean he was truly part of the Light side now? He had no idea. All he knew was that he had passed the Beacerika’s test, and his next stop was Jakku. With this thought in mind, he told P4-3 to punch it, and whoosh! Gravity whisked them away.


	18. Chapter 17 Sands of Confession

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Yay! I finally found the inspiration to write the next chapter of my version of the Rise of Skywalker! My thanks goes to Hurricane Dorian, what I have been dealing with in the past week, as well you guys who have been patiently waiting for the next exciting event in Rey and Kylo Ren's journey. If not for you, I would have never made it this far in this story. You guys mean a lot to me. I want you to know that. I love you all, and thank you for bearing with me during this crazy past week in the South!
> 
> Sincerely,  
VikaFromTheMoon

The Luggabeast’s huge feet stomped through Jakku’s deserts and picked up sand. On its back, Rey pulled her cape’s hood over her head and lowered it. Sand whipped in her face from the Luggabeast’s powerful feet, and she spat it out. She kept an eye out for the Eastern Sinking Sands, as well as the town Aerolin mentioned for her to travel to, but then she stopped the Luggabeast – for she saw something in the distance. A sparkle in a giant sand pit. Rey was mesmerized by it. She stared at the sparkle, as did the Luggabeast, and slid off its back. Clutching her arm, she started towards the pit, with the beast following her. Rey walked for a good minute or two, and then she stopped over the pit and peered down to it. What she saw was the hilt of something – a weapon of some sort. The girl gasped when she recognized it. It was her lightsaber! How did it wind up here? She remembered throwing it away, and now she has to stumble upon it all over again? Rey felt her right hand tingling, and she grasped it with her left one. She hated this! She hated being so conflicted! Why wouldn’t the hooded man leave her alone? She heard his cackling in her head. She did not want to pick up the lightsaber, but then she remembered what happened to her when she threw it away. The pain. The pain the man unleashed on her was excruciating. It almost killed her. It would have if Aerolin did not come to her rescue. Rey feared that if she refused to pull the saber out from the pit, the man would punish her again. Therefore, she did. Rey grasped the hilt with both hands and started to pull. Both her hair and cape waved in the wind when she did this. The Luggabeast snuck up on her from behind and watched intrigued. Just as Aerolin told it, this girl was a very unique individual. With one more tug, she freed the lightsaber and stumbled backwards. The Luggabeast caught her on its nose. Thanking it, Rey pushed off and studied the lightsaber she held up and down.  
Here came the hooded man’s voice, since he just loved tormenting the young woman, “Well done, Rey. Well done. You are one step closer to your new power.” Again, what was this “power” he mentioned? Rey wanted to know, but at the same time, she didn’t want to. Her mind returned to Aerolin and the town she mentioned. Even though she no longer had her Force abilities, she still had her instincts, and they told her that what she was looking for was nearby. Therefore, she clipped the saber to her belt and took off at a run, in the direction of a huge sand dune, which was across the sandy plain.

  
She did not get far before she suddenly felt something grab her by the back of her cape and pull her back. The Luggabeast. Rey nearly stepped into a huge pit of sinking sand – the Sinking Sands of the East – and she gasped when she saw her mistake.  
Only a few seconds later, she yelled, “Whoa!” when the cybernetic creature picked her up, twirled her in a circle, and tossed her back onto its back. Her jaw dropped, and she wrapped her arms around its neck again.

  
The creature safely escorted her to the dune she was interested in by avoiding the other pits of sinking sand. As it did this, Rey twisted her head and peered back to each pit. Eventually, when they reached the end of the plain, the Luggabeast dropped her, and she landed on her backside directly in front of the dune. Thanking it, Rey rose to her shaky legs and brushed herself down.  
She peered up the face of the dune and told her new friend, “Something tells me this is where we need to be.” There was only one way to know for sure. She had to climb the dune. Oh, fun. That was going to be an adventure when she had a badly injured arm. Then again, if what Aerolin said was true and the town on the other side of the dune specialized in medical technologies, then she should be able to soak her injury in bacta and heal it. Rey had to admit, she was getting really tired with the fact that she could barely move her arm.  
With this in mind, she and the Luggabeast started up the tall, steep dune. The proper name for it was the Skyscraper Dune. The Luggabeast followed closely on Rey’s heels as she climbed. She lost track of how many times she tripped and rolled into the creature’s nose. Behind the friends, though, something eerie appeared on the horizon. It was a huge dust cloud, and it slowly made its way towards the Eastern Sinking Sands and the Skyscraper Dune. A sandstorm was just getting ready to hit.

“So, why are you two good friends again?” Finn asked Yamo and Lando back on Phonolukamy. He and his friends sat around the fire with the seven-foot-tall Lukaemians. They exchanged uncomfortable glances at one another, but Yamo smiled.  
Lifting his blue, muscular arm, he wrapped it around Lando’s shoulders and pulled him close to his chest, “Oh, we go way back. Don’t we, buddy?”  
“Yes, we certainly do.” Lando gasped for air – Yamo hugged him so tightly. He pushed away from his friend’s chest and turned to face Finn, Temiri, Rose, Poe, Chewie, and the droids.  
Finn narrowed his eyebrows and asked, “Mr. Calrissian, what are you hiding from us? What did you smuggle into Phonolukamy?”  
“We have to know.” Poe said in a stern voice. He squeezed the cup of water he held in his hands and narrowed his eyebrows to an angry position.  
Rose mimicked him and asked, “Does it have something to do with the First Order? Rey? Kylo Ren? What is it?”  
“I told you guys on the _Falcon_.” Lando scoffed, “That’s between Yamo and I. Right, Yamo?”  
“Sure is, bro!” Yamo once again pulled him close to his chest. He clenched his fist and rubbed his knuckle on the top of Lando’s head.  
Annoyed, Temiri asked in an angry voice, “Then what’s the point of us coming to Arcean?”  
“Oh yes!” Lando suddenly spoke, “Yamo.” He once again pushed himself off Yamo’s chest, “Could you check the _Falcon_ for us? I’m not sure if she can make it back through the Wormhole without being spaghettified.”  
“Why certainly, little brother!” Yamo leaped to his feet and pointed a huge, meaty finger in the sky, “It is my duty to protect my friends from turning into the blue-plate special!”  
“The blue-plate special?” Rose shivered just at the thought of her getting served on the Beacerika’s dinner plate. Goosebumps appeared on her arms, and she rubbed them. Behind her, Temiri huffed and closed his eyes. Rising to his feet, he turned on his heel and left the gathering. Chewie followed him, since he had been given the task of looking after him by Leia.

The two friends headed over to a platform on the edge of Arcean that overlooked Phonolukamy’s dry landscape. Temiri rested his hand on a single tree next to it.  
He sensed Chewbacca was behind him and said just one thing, “Hope.” Chewie growled with agreement. “We’ve goofed off long enough,” continued the little boy, “Master Rey needs us, and we’re ignoring her like trash.” Again, Chewie growled. Still staring ahead to the landscape, Temiri clenched his fist and turned on a serious face. He lifted his left hand and pointed it at a single house next to him and Wookie. A broomstick suddenly flew into it – it had been propped up against the side of it – and Temiri clutched its handle so tightly, his fist turned white. “Let’s go,” he told Chewie in a serious voice, and Chewie nodded. He grabbed the boy and tossed him onto his furry shoulders. As they made their way towards Arcean’s spaceport, Temiri wrapped his arms around the Wookie and told him, “The first thing we need to do is figure out the Emperor’s plan, and the only way we’re going to do that is if we return to the Phonolukamy Blockade.”  
“_The Limpton_?” Chewie growled at him, and Temiri nodded,  
“Yes. _The Limpton_. That is our first stop.”

Okay, Rey was getting sick and tired of constantly rolling down the Skyscraper Dune now. Couldn’t she and the Luggabeast make it to the top already? Now she knew why it took the name the “Skyscraper Dune.” Sweat trickled down her temples as she started to grow hot again. Strange, she knew Jakku was hot, but she never recalled it being this hot. Something was wrong, but what? Rey suddenly felt like Jakku was no longer safe – that it was in terrible danger. She tried to not let this bother her as she continued to climb. As the sandstorm drew closer and closer, the wind picked up. Rey, though, did not give up. She may not have her Force abilities, but she did have herself: her willpower and bravery. The look on her face was serious, but it also showed that she was touching into the Dark side of the Force. Rey did not feel like herself. She felt evil, almost as evil as the hooded man. Her lightsaber trembled on her belt – it feared her power, and Rey tightly clenched her right fist.  
Finally, she and the Luggabeast reached the top of the dune. Out of breath, the Luggabeast stepped off to the side and tried to catch them. On the other hand, Rey moved over to the dune’s edge, still looking as conflicted as ever. She paused on her tracks and examined her find. What she was looking at was a huge resort town, which had a huge number of sand waterfalls surrounding it.  
Her hazel brown eyes landed on the bazaar, and this was the only thing that escaped her lips, “The Desert Resort.” BOOM! The second she said that, the devastating sandstorm hit both her and the Luggabeast. Not only that, but Jakku’s sun suddenly let off a great blast of light that momentarily blinded Rey and sent her front-flipping down the other side of the Skyscraper Dune. Roaring, the Luggabeast shook its head and followed her. The sun looked larger, brighter, and it flickered like crazy. There was the problem. The whole reason why Jakku felt so much hotter than usual was because its sun was starting to go supernova.

“All right, I confess!” Lando shouted at Finn, Rose, Poe, and the droids, “I had to do this, guys! I had to!”  
“What did you do?” Finn asked in an angry voice, “We’re not going to move until you tell us, Mr. Calrissian.”  
“That’s right.” Rose crossed her arms and glared at the older man.  
As did Poe, and he agitatedly spoke, “You’ve done us wrong. I can feel it. It has to do something with the First Order, right?”  
“Yes.” Lando shivered and shooed Yamo away who was trying to stick up for him, “Here’s the truth, guys.” Again, he shivered. Head lowered, he placed his hands in his lap and shook with fear, “I smuggled in weapons for the Phonolukamy Blockade.”

“Jakku’s sun is going supernova!” Temiri shouted at Chewie in the cockpit of an X-Wing. It was the first ship they saw when they made it to Arcean’s spaceport. Behind Temiri, Chewie roared with fear. “I feel it,” continued the little boy, “We do not have much time. In just three more days, the whole planet of Jakku is going to be lost to the ashes of the galaxy. We have to make this quick, if we are to change its fate, as well as Rey’s. We need to hurry to _The Limpton_. Then and only then will we be able to speak to the Emperor in person.” Nodding, Chewie roared and grabbed hold of the wheel on his side of the X-Wing. Both he and Force-sensitive Temiri lifted the ship into the sky, even though there were a few angry Lukaemians shouting at them from below. As the two flew away in the direction of space and the Phonolukamy Wormhole, Temiri told Chewie, “Kylo Ren is almost at Jakku. He will make sure Rey gets out of there safely. For now, we need to try all we can to stop history from repeating itself.” Then, just like that, the Wookie and boy accelerated into space, leaving nothing but a puff of smoke behind.


	19. Chapter 18 The Beacerika Tamed

“You smuggled in weapons for the First Order? Why?!” With every passing second, Finn felt his face grow hotter and hotter from rage. Here he thought Lando was his friend, but then he betrayed him and his friends.  
At the sight of his friends’ rage, Lando held his hand out to them and quickly said, “It’s not like that, guys! I did it for a very specific reason!”  
“You’re a traitor! I knew we couldn’t trust you!” Poe was the one who shouted that. He smacked his dinner plate off his lap and leaped to his feet, “You’ve been working for the First Order this entire time!”  
“Guys, stop.” Lando begged, “You’re overreacting.”  
“Overreacting?!” Sudden lightning flashed as Rose leaped to her own feet. She gave Lando the evil death glare, “The First Order murdered my sister! I can’t believe we actually fell for your trap!”  
“Stop!” Lando’s head started to hurt. He grasped it with both hands, and Yamo comfortably patted his shoulder, “It’s not like that!”  
Right when he yelled that, Poe snatched his shirt collar and jerked him up from his seat, “We know perfectly well who you are! Don’t you play dumb with us!”  
“But I’m not a traitor!” Lando cried out as he tried to release himself, “I did it because Jakku’s sun is going supernova!”

“Hang on tight! We’re going through!” Temiri and Chewie held their breaths as the gravity from the Phonolukamy Wormhole snatched the X-Wing and dropped them back into its mouth. On their way through it, they came up with a plan.  
Temiri peered over his shoulder to Chewie and told him, “We’ll probably find the Emperor in the throne room.”  
Confused, Chewie growled, _“The throne room?”_ to the little boy, _“I thought that was the Supreme Leader’s hideout.”_  
“You’re really going to fall for that?” angrily asked Temiri, “You? The great Chewbacca?”  
Whining, Chewie shrugged his shoulders and growled, _“I don’t know what you’re saying.”_  
“What I’m saying is that the Emperor highjacked _The Limpton_! The General Hux we spoke to when Lando tried to get us into the ship is the Emperor in disguise!”  
“Oh!” Chewie felt so dumb right now, “Of course. It all makes sense,” and he slapped his furry hand to his face.  
He remembered Hux’s line before he released the Beacerika to attack the _Millennium Falcon_ in the Phonolukamy Blockade, “‘Kylo Ren belongs to me,’” and then he unleashed the beast. If not for Ren himself, the _Falcon_ would have never made it out of there alive.

Kylo Ren knew the General Hux he spoke to in the Phonolukamy Blockade was the Emperor in disguise. Something must have happened after he left for his mission to seek out Rey. Now he knew she was in terrible danger. Ben knew the Emperor’s plot and why he was so keen on grabbing her instead of him. He knew why Rey was a descendant of evil. The realization came when he sat in his throne room and thought about what happened that day when she and he teamed up to fight the Praetorian Guards.

Jakku was close. The Force wasn’t the only thing that told Ben this, but also a sudden heat wave that engulfed The Robin Hood. There was Jakku, but something looked off with its sun. It was expanding – growing bigger (like the beginning of the universe), and hotter.  
Just at the sight of it, a terrible feeling flushed through Ben’s body, and he told P4-3, “I have a bad feeling about this.” As quick as a flash, he pulled Rey’s lightsaber off his belt and set it down on the co-pilot seat next to him, “We’ve got to get Rey out of there.” P4-3 beeped to tell him she agreed. Her head flew back as Ben punched the accelerator, and they accelerated towards the desert planet.

WHOOSH! The sandstorm hit with full force. It nearly knocked the Luggabeast off its feet. Frightened, it searched the pile of sand that fell with Rey when she rolled down the Skyscraper Dune. Suddenly, a hand shot up from the pile, and the cybernetic creature jumped ten feet in the air when Rey emerged from it like a zombie. A glare glued on her face, she tightly clutched her new lightsaber in her left hand, but her right hand started to tingle and shake again.  
Once she pushed herself to her feet, her glare faded, and she gestured at the Luggabeast with her head, “Come on! We need to find shelter!” With that, the young woman sprinted through the sandstorm into the Desert Resort, and the Luggabeast chased her. They reached the deserted bazaar, but right when they did, a great blast of wind knocked the lightsaber right out of Rey’s hand. “No!” she shouted, and she reached for it, “Come back!” Unfortunately, she was not able to grab the saber with the Force. Remember, the hooded figure stripped her of her abilities. The lightsaber stabbed the sand about two-hundred feet away from her, and Rey hurried after it. Behind, the Luggabeast called for her to come back, but she didn’t.

Just before Rey could reach out and snatch up her lightsaber, the sand suddenly took on the form of a huge monster – the Beacerika, and it threatened her with its fangs. Yelling, Rey stumbled backwards. She held her arm up to her face, and her eyes widened at the sight of the terrifying creature. Oh, of all the times she couldn’t have her Force abilities, it had to be now! The Beacerika roared, and its huge, gaping mouth moved down towards her. Rey finally leaned back so far; she fell onto her back. Holding out her hand, she tried to use the Force to push the sand monster away, but nothing happened. She was totally powerless. The Luggabeast tried to come to her rescue, but a huge blast wave from the storm chucked it into a building and knocked it out cold. Traumatized, Rey held her hand out to it, and then her eyes moved back up to the beast hovering over her. She closed her eyes and braced her head as the Beacerika threw itself on top of her. It picked up the girl from the bazaar and swallowed her whole.

Rey tried to scream as she churned in its sandy body, but sand got in her throat. This prevented her from yelling. Not only that, but the overwhelming heat from not just the Beacerika but also Jakku’s dying sun caused her to feel like her whole body was on fire. For the love of Pete! Why did everything have to happen to her? She wished Ben was next to her. At least she felt safe around him during the earthquake on Phonolukamy. But no. Ben was gone, and it was all her fault.  
Just thinking about him caused hot tears to stream down the girl’s cheeks. “I’m sorry, Ben!” she screamed, “I wasn’t strong enough to save you! I am nothing but a monster and a disgrace to this galaxy! Just let me die!” She slapped her hands to her face and ferociously shook her head, “JUST LET ME DIE! Ben, I’m sorry!!”

Right after she screamed that, suddenly, time froze. The Beacerika stopped tossing piles of sand on the girl. Now she looked like she was just floating in space. Opening her eyes, Rey removed her hands and looked forward. She then felt herself dropping gently to the ground. She watched the whole phenomenon with a bewildered expression on her face. Now covered in sand, her feet gently touched the street of the bazaar, and she noticed that the sandstorm was resigning. Sand zoomed by her head, and she turned it so she could follow the path it was taking. Freezing at what she saw, her jaw dropped.  
Kylo Ren/Ben Solo stood in front of her, with his hand sticking straight out, and he surveyed the area with a confused look on his face. It was as if he had no idea what he just did. Floating behind him was the Beacerika’s Sand Form, the one who just tormented the girl, and P4-3 rolled up next to him. His eyes landed on Rey, and then they rolled up to the creature. All Rey could do was just stare. Trembling, she examined the man and then the monster resigning behind him. Kylo Ren/Ben Solo…had tamed the Beacerika.


	20. Chapter 19 Rey's Destiny

“Ben!” Rey could not believe who she was looking at! She rubbed her eyes to make sure she wasn’t seeing things – that Ben was not a mere Force ghost – that it was truly him. Clenching his fist, he ordered the Beacerika to change its form, and it did. It now was a cute, brown creature with dark eyes, large ears, a white belly, and brown fur. Landing on Ben’s shoulder, it crawled up to his head and settled down on his mass of dark hair. Once it was nice and snug, Ben placed his hands on his hips and admitted, “Well, Rey, you sure find yourself in a lot of trouble, now don’t ya?”

“Ben! How did you…?! I saw the earthquake swallow you!”

“I came to return this to you.” With that, Ben held his lightsaber out to bewildered Rey, “You lost it on Phonolukamy.” At the sight of the saber, the girl’s eyes popped. She started to reach for it but pulled back when she feared that the hooded figure would try to kill her again if she did. She knew he was still angry at her for throwing her new lightsaber. Besides, she still couldn’t believe that she was indeed looking at Ben Solo. The young woman closed her eyes and whimpered. She could not bring herself to take the saber out of Ben’s hand. He felt her fear. Why was Rey so scared? She pushed his arm away and picked up her new lightsaber instead – the red one. Then, with it in hand, she started to leave Ben. He called after her, “Rey!” and reached for her shoulder.

The young woman sensed him and glared. Whirling around, she snatched his fist and knocked him back a few steps. Her eyes once again flashed yellow when she did this. She looked very evil, and this frightened Ben. No! Was he too late? He couldn’t be! To Rey, he begged, “Rey, don’t let the Emperor take the upper hand over you. This is not who you are!” What started off as a mission for Rey to turn Ben back to the Light side became a mission for him to save her, and it was all because of what the Beacerika did to her on Dark Side Island. She let Ben go and turned on her heel. He watched as she marched away, with clenched fists at her sides, and tried to come up with a plan to help her. The arm injury wasn’t the only thing causing her to suffer and nor was the Emperor himself. Even the Beacerika wasn’t turning her. Something else was going on, and it was up to Ben to prevent it from torturing her anymore.

With the Beacerika still on his head, he headed over to the dazed Luggabeast that just woke up. It cleared its head by shaking it and rubbed its foot on the ground. Ben stopped in front of it and bowed. The Beacerika clung to his hair when he did this. “My bad,” the man told the Luggabeast, “I did not mean to slam you into the buildings. I know you’re recovering from that throw, but you need to tell me where Rey is going. Time is running out. Jakku’s sun is growing larger and hotter by the second, and if we don’t do something fast, no longer will I be able to call Rey a ‘friend.’”

As she made her way through the deserted bazaar, Rey searched for the medical center Aerolin mentioned, but she did not have a lot of luck finding it. She’s never been here before, and how could she know where places were if nobody was on the streets to tell her? In fact, where were the villagers? Why was it so eerily quiet here in the Desert Resort? As Rey tried to figure this out, she rubbed sweat from her brow and let her cape wave behind her. Then…she found something. It was a huge building surrounded by sand waterfalls that seemed to call her name. Rey did not need her Force abilities to feel a haunting, familiar presence. She reached down and picked up a lone staff. While it resembled the staff she usually carried around, it was not the exact same. With it in hand, the girl glared and stepped into the haunted building.

“What do you mean Jakku’s sun is going supernova?!” Poe Dameron asked Lando Calrissian in a furious voice.

“If my memory serves me right,” C-3PO spoke from off to the side, “A supernova is an exploding star.”

“Exploding star?! But Rey is on that planet!” The panic in Finn’s voice was real. He whirled around so he could face 3PO, and Rose crossed her arms in a slightly jealous way behind him. She sometimes felt like Finn liked Rey more than her.

Still glaring, Poe angrily but desperately asked Lando, “What kind of weapons did you smuggle into the First Order? Do you not even realize that they are our greatest enemy?”

“The First Order knows of Jakku’s imminent death.” Lando explained with crossed arms, “They know there is a power out there that exceeds even theirs. So therefore, I am working together with them to stop this threat from coming true.”

“What?” Rose was so confused, as was Finn and Poe, “But they murdered my sister! The First Order is filled full of nothing but monsters!”

“You’re wrong.” Lando shook his head. He flicked up the collar of his shirt to make himself look cool, and explained, “The First Order lives in this galaxy as well. Nobody wants to die. Come on. We all know this. If we are going to win this war, then we need to turn our greatest enemies into our greatest allies.”

“That’s right! I’m ready to rumble!” Just as he said this, Yamo picked up a blaster and set it. He closed one eye and pointed it forward, as if practicing target shooting.

Behind him, another seven-foot tall Lukaemian, Houdini, crossed his huge arms and admitted, “The Emperor may be back, kids, but at the end of the day, while he is extremely dangerous, he is not the true threat we are dealing with here.”

“What?!” Rose looked even more confused than she already was, “Then who is?”

Lando cleared his throat and narrowed his eyebrows to an angry position, “The true threat…is Rey.”

“There it is, Chewie! The Phonolukamy Blockade!” From his side of the X-Wing’s cockpit, Temiri pointed forward to the towering _Limpton_, “We just need to get inside, find the Emperor, and figure out what he did with General Hux and the rest of the crewmembers.” Smirking, he peered over his shoulder to Chewie who returned his stare, “Come on. You made the Kessel Run with Han Solo in twelve parsecs, so I know you have a plan.” And Chewie did. The plan he had, it was something he remembered from his adventures with Luke and Leia Skywalker, and he couldn’t wait to try it again, this time with Temiri Blagg.

“Rey!” Ben’s voice traveled throughout the entire bazaar of the Desert Resort, but he received no answer. P-43 rolled ahead of him and passed by tables and barrels, just in case she was hiding behind them. Behind Ben, the Luggabeast nudged his back with its helmet. “Don’t worry,” he encouragingly told the cybernetic creature, and he ran his hand across the top of its helmet, “We’ll find Rey.” His eyes then rolled up to the Beacerika sitting on his head, “Beacerika, I know you know where she is. Why don’t you lead the way?” Understanding his request, the tamed Beacerika nodded and looked ahead, in the direction of the building Rey entered.

This did not look like a medical center. Rey had no idea why she was drawn towards this one particular building. Just like the rest of the Desert Resort, aside from her, there were absolutely no life forms in it. Or were there? Her scavenger senses took her straight to a door at the end of the hallway, and she kicked it down. She entered what looked like a run-down laboratory or control room. Old computers and droids surrounded her. This raised an interesting question, to Rey at least. Was the Desert Resort something else before it became the Desert Resort? What if one of the computers still worked? Perhaps that would allow the scavenger to pinpoint where the villagers may be? With this in mind, she tightened her grip on her staff and approached a computer. Rey scrambled around with the buttons to see if any of them would turn it on, but none did. She didn’t give up though. Something told her a computer still worked in here, and that this computer could make her mission so much easier. The young woman scurried towards another one across the room but bumped into an old droid – an R2 unit. It rested right in the center.

Rey jumped when she felt it. “Excuse me,” she spoke, and she gently pushed it off to the side so she could reach the computer she was drawn towards. Her eyes scanned it up and down, and she asked, “Why do I feel that this is the computer I need?” You’re a Jedi, Rey, that’s why. She shuffled over to a latch and grabbed it. The young woman took a deep breath. Then, she pulled the latch up.

Amazingly, all around her, the computers booted up at the same time, including the one she was next to! Each computer screen glowed blue, and the blue showered young Rey.

A part of her didn’t shine though. “Wow,” she stammered as she examined the many different computers, but her excitement quickly faded when she heard the familiar, haunting laughter of the hooded man, her tormenter,

_“Well done, Rey.”_ This time, a holographic image of his face appeared in front of the computer she was interested in, _“You’ve passed your test.”_

“Test? What test?” Why did Rey suddenly feel like she just did something terrible? Did the man pull her into a trap, or was this indeed her destiny?

He smirked at her and admitted, _“Your Force abilities are waiting for you, as well as your new power.”_

“What test?” Rey asked again, and she narrowed her eyebrows.

_“As Empress of this galaxy, we will take out the whole First Order and Resistance,”_ was what the man told her, _“The supernova awaits you. That is where you shall receive your new power.”_

“Wait, supernova? What are you talking about, G…?” But Rey cut off right here. Something, a word, almost escaped her lips, but she stopped herself before she could say anymore.

Cackling, the man gave her an evil look and asked,

_“Ah, I see you’re starting to understand who you are.”_

“What are you talking about? I’m just a scavenger from Jakku. I’m nobody. Ben told me in Snoke’s throne room.”

_“Ben is weak. You’re not.”_ When he said this, the man’s holographic image changed. It expanded to show a full body apparition. Not a hologram but an apparition. He started towards nervous Rey, and gulping, she backed away from him. Her left hand rested on the hilt of her lightsaber, but she was too scared to ignite it. As the man edged closer and closer to her, her right arm started to tremble. Then, boom! He shot out his hand and grabbed it. Yelling in pain, the girl tried to free her arm, but he only tightened his grip on it when she did. She flinched and shook with fear as he undid the bandage around the Beacerika’s wound and pulled it off. _“Ah, lovely,”_ he spoke as he examined the wound, _“No longer is your blood red. It is the color of the Dark side, black, which means that your training is nearly complete.”_

“Let go.” Rey begged as tears streamed down her cheeks, “Please. It hurts. I came here looking for a medical center.”

_“All you need to do now…, granddaughter…is fly to the supernova.”_


	21. Chapter 20 Rey vs. The Supernova Part 1

No! Rey could not believe what the man just told her! Her entire body numbed. She felt like she was turning to stone. Falling to her knees, she grasped each side of her head as she tried not to scream. The man let her arm go and backed away from her.  
As he disappeared in the deepest, darkest corner of the control room, he held his arms out to his sides and cackled, “Let yourself scream, for it is who you are.” Then, just like that, he vanished and left the traumatized, scarred girl behind.

  
The tears fell like a monstrous hurricane. Rey punched the ground and did what the hooded man told her to do. She screamed. If what the man told her was true, then she really was a monster! She really was a descendant of evil! She really was the galaxy’s worst enemy! Rey screamed so loud that the entire computer room shook.

Ben heard her scream,  
“Rey!” and he quickly stopped P-43 and the Beacerika on their tracks. The Luggabeast had to stay outside, but it acted as a bodyguard and paced back and forth in front of the building. At every sudden sound, it growled. In the building, Ben jumped into a run, and he scurried in front of the droid and Force-sensitive creature, again yelling, “Rey!” When he reached a long, narrow hallway, he came to a screeching halt and rapidly searched the area. He tried to feel Rey’s aura, but it was difficult because she was concealed behind a door. Luckily, the Beacerika came to Ben’s rescue.  
It hopped down from his shoulder and scurried down the hallway like a mouse. “Wait!” Ben called after it. He and P-43 followed it to the door of the computer room. Ben used his shoulder to break it down. However, because he did this so quickly, he fell forward and landed with a kasplat on the dirty ground. Rising to his hands and knees, his eyes widened when he saw he was in a computer room, but wait a minute. It looked a little bit familiar. That’s because the Desert Resort used to be a hideout for the First Order. These computers were chock-full of traps that they used against their enemies, particularly the Resistance. Not only that, but Ben noticed something quite unsettling in front of one computer, and a latch. A bundle, and she shook as tears streamed down her cheeks. All the color drained from Ben’s face when he saw it, “Rey!” and he hurried to the twitching, traumatized girl on the floor. His eyes landed on the latch, and then the computer she rested in front of. It was the computer she was interested in when she stumbled into this room in the first place. “Rey!” Ben yelled again, and he quickly grabbed her arm. She screamed, for he had her by her injured arm. Ben held her in his arms, and he peered down on her flustered, yet pale face, asking, “What have you done?!”

Like what he did when he snuck aboard Darth Vader’s ship with Luke, Leia, Han, and Obi Wan years ago, Chewie just casually landed his and Temiri’s X-Wing in The Limpton’s ship hanger. They followed a few TIE Silencers in. In the hanger’s control room, stood General Hux.  
Eyes landing on the ship, he asked his comrades, “What is that puny, little ship doing in here?”  
“Sir, it’s a Resistance craft.”  
“A Resistance craft? What are you doing just sitting here, then? Blast it!”  
“Yes, Supreme Leader!” With that, the mechanic pushed a button for a Code Red crisis. As soon as he did, doors in the hanger slid open, and in sprinted a bunch of stormtroopers.

Seeing them, Temiri smirked and told Chewie,  
“Now it’s time for the real fun to begin.” Laughing, Chewie nodded at the little boy. Then, grabbing his bowcaster, he hurried out of the X-Wing, with Temiri close on his heels. One at a time, Chewie blasted the stormtroopers coming towards him and the Force-sensitive child. Blast! Blast! Blast! Oh, ho, ho, ho! He had forgotten what this felt like! Temiri was too young to hold a blaster, but he did have his broom. Using the power of the Force, he spun it around the room like a boomerang. The broom snuck up on lines of stormtroopers and smashed through them, which caused them to fall like dominos. Who knew a broom could be such a reliable weapon? It threw the stormtroopers up against the hanger’s wall, and while they were down, Chewie blasted them with his bowcaster. Wow, he and Temiri actually made pretty, darn good team. It reminded him of all those times he fought alongside Han Solo.

“Why aren’t you blasting those freaks?!” Hux snapped from the control room.  
“Sir, they’re taking out all our men!” shouted the comrade he spoke to originally.  
“Why?! There’s only two of them!”  
“Yeah, but I think one of them is Force-sensitive!”  
“Force-sensitive?! Who’s Force-sensitive?!” When he asked this, Hux leaned in close to the mechanic’s computer.  
He pointed at Temiri in the camera and said, “I think it’s the boy.”  
“The boy?” Hux growled, and he lowered his head, “We’ll see about that,” With those words, he shoved past the mechanic’s shoulder and stomped to the computer room’s exit. Where was the _Millennium Falcon_ in all this chaos?

  
Chewie and Temiri continued to take out stormtroopers. Both of them were having the time of their lives.  
Temiri continued to take out stormtroopers with his broom, while Chewie did the dirty work. “Whoo!” shouted the young boy, “Now this is what I call steam!” Unfortunately, right as he said this, time suddenly froze. Suddenly, he and Chewie couldn’t move. They froze in their battle positions, as if they just became statues. Quickly, the stormtroopers who still stood moved off to the side when the ship’s main hanger opened. A figure appeared in the doorway. Where he and Chewie were, Temiri tried to let his broom go, but this was to no avail. Chewie whimpered, but Temiri told him in a confident voice, “Don’t worry, Chewie. We’ve got this.” When he said that, his eyes moved to the figure standing in the doorway.  
Only a few seconds later, a red light along with a buzzing sound emerged from the shadows. “Welcome,” spoke an eerie, cackling voice, and just like that, General Hux stepped into the ship hanger.

“Ben, I need to fly to the supernova.” The desperation in Rey’s voice was serious. After Ben found her in the computer room, he escorted her outside and to the medical center she came here looking for in the first place. She and Ben now sat across from one another in one of the center’s rooms, and Rey had her right arm resting in a tub of bacta. She flinched, for the bacta stung, but she felt safe with Ben close to her. So many terrible things had happened to her lately, but for some reason, Ben’s presence calmed her.  
They stared into each other’s eyes, and Ben asked her, “So, you know who you are?”  
“I do.” Nodding, Rey removed her arm from the bacta and shook it out, “And I also know I can fix this.”  
“Who are you?” Ben asked in a serious but somewhat hypnotic voice. He stared deep into Rey’s soul.  
This was her answer. “I am Rey.” Flashbacks of that special evening when she sat with Leia on Supher invaded her mind, “I have a talent with the Force like no other, and it is my duty to save Jakku, nay, the whole galaxy from myself.”  
“Do you know why you are in this situation in the first place?” questioned Ben, and she nodded again,  
“Yes. It’s because I used the Dark side to encounter the Beacerika on the island.”  
“That’s right. Rey, I know who you are. I had a feeling you were a descendant of evil when we fought the Praetorian Guards. That’s why I lied and said you were nobody.”  
“You knew something like this was eventually going to happen.”  
“Yes.” Ben gave her a quick nod, “I wanted to protect you, to prevent the premonition from coming true. But now it looks like I’ve failed you.”  
“Oh, Ben, you didn’t fail me.” When she said this, Rey once again removed her arm from the bacta so she could see if her wound was getting better, “I failed you. I failed Luke. You’re not the amateur, but I am.”

_“Yes, you are, Rey,”_ a sudden wise but mystical voice spoke from off to the side. At the same time, Ben and Rey turned their heads. Eyes widening, their jaws dropped. From the shadows in the corner of the room, out stepped a rather short but familiar figure.  
He had pointy ears, green skin, and wore a Jedi robe. “Master Yoda,” were the only words that left Ben’s lips. Right as Yoda appeared, another Force ghost stepped into the scene and stood next to him. This one was much taller, and he also wore a Jedi robe.  
Now it was Rey’s turn to speak, “Master Skywalker.” Indeed, it was Luke Skywalker. He slowly came within reach of the two youths, and his eyes landed on Rey.  
To her, he repeated what Yoda told him back on Ahch-To, “‘The greatest lesson failure is,’” and then repeated what he told her in the Phonolukamy Wormhole, ‘We’ve passed down all we know, Rey. A thousand generations live in you. But this is your fight.’”  
“I said I wasn’t going to fail you, Master.” Rey choked on her words, “And look where my overconfidence got me.”  
“True. True.” Yoda chuckled. Using the support of his cane, he hobbled over to Ben and stood next to his left arm, “Join Ben when you had the chance, you should have. Travel to supernova, you must, to restore your moral ambiguity.”  
“As a descendant of evil, you need to stop fighting the Light and Dark sides of the Force.” Luke spoke. When he said this, he kneeled to Rey and gently picked up her right hand, “You need to turn to the Dark side.”  
“But what if I can’t turn back?” Rey knew the power she was capable of. What if she destroyed the whole galaxy? What if she destroyed Ben? What if she destroyed her friends, even General Leia?

It was Ben’s turn to comfort her. Luke turned her hand over to him, and the young man gently clutched it with both hands of his own.  
Smiling sheepishly, he promised, “Rey, you will. I’ll make sure you do. However, the only way to save the galaxy is for you to turn. In order for the Force to be balanced, there needs to be one Jedi and one Sith. Light and darkness. Trust me. This is your destiny.”  
“‘Destiny is not a horse.’” Rey repeated as a fountain of tears rolled down her cheeks, “Ben, I’m scared.”  
“I know you are, but you have to do this.” When he said this, the Beacerika jumped off the young man’s shoulder and landed on Rey’s instead. Luke scratched it under the chin and said, “You will take the Beacerika with you. He will get you to the supernova safely.”  
“Have confidence, you must,” chuckled Yoda, “Learn from mistakes. Fight the battle. Live the dream.” Here, he reached behind his back and pulled something out from it, as if from out of nowhere. It was a brand-new lightsaber. Gulping, Rey pulled up the hood of her cape and reached for it. She hesitated, but the Jedi Master nodded his head to encourage her. Luke placed his hand on her shoulder and rubbed it.  
In front of her, Ben once again said, “You need to do this.” Rey shivered, but she accepted Yoda’s gift. The second she did, the lightsaber ignited – buzz, and revealed a red, double-blade.  
Next to her, the Beacerika admired the weapon and telepathically told the girl, _“Welcome, Rey…to the Dark side.”_

With Ben, Luke, Yoda, and P-43 on either side of her, Rey bound her healing wound and marched outside to the Desert Resort’s hot, steamy atmosphere. She held her new lightsaber in her hand. The Beacerika rode on her shoulder, and she kept her hood on her head. Her friends escorted her to the Desert Resort’s spaceport, where Ben landed _The Robin Hood_. For her mission, he gave it to her. Ben helped her into the cockpit of the ship. Once in it, the Beacerika hopped down from Rey’s shoulder and landed in the co-pilot seat next to her. Before taking off, Ben once again took Rey’s hand. He gently shook it, and she returned the shake. Then, letting go, she booted up _The Robin Hood_ and focused her attention on Jakku’s supernova. Outside, Ben backed away from it and joined Yoda, Luke, and P-43. Together, they watched as the ship slowly lifted into the sky. Rey peered over her shoulder one last time to her friends, and they feebly smiled. Then, with a flick of her wrist, she punched the Robin Hood’s accelerator and shot straight up, away from safety and in the direction of her final battle – Rey vs. the supernova.


	22. Optional Read: Thirteen Questions and Navigational Answers

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I recommend you read this only if you've come along this far in Rey and Kylo Ren's crazy journey. I know this story is confusing, for there is so much going on, but like with any other Star Wars book, movie, and TV show, everything is connected, and in the case of this fanfic, all the connections will come in Part 4: The Final Battle. Until Part 4 comes out, though, I am going to try to help you navigate the story and give you clues on where to find at least some information on the thirteen questions I know you have, because I want to help you guys. Keep in mind that I know this is NOT how Episode IX is going to go, but if I wrote The Rise of Skywalker, I'd want the story to be something like this. This is merely a work of fanfiction that is written by someone who loves Star Wars. Think of this as a scavenger hunt. With that said, here are the thirteen questions I know you have:
> 
> Sincerely,  
VikaFromTheMoon

1\. Who is Aerolin? Answer will come in _Chapter 21: Rey vs. The Supernova Part 2_.

2\. What is the deal with General Hux? How does he have a connection to the Emperor? First clues are in _Chapter 9: Descendant of Evil_ and it goes into more detail in _Chapter 18: The Beacerika Tamed_.

3\. Why is the Beacerika super important to this story? A clue is in the optional read I posted after _Chapter 13: The Rise of Skywalker_. More information will be coming in Part 4.

4\. Where is General Leia in all this chaos? Answer will also be coming in Part 4.

5\. Why is Rey considered a “Descendant of Evil?” First clue is in _Chapter 19: Rey’s Destiny_. I will go into greater detail with this title in Part 4.

6\. Who the heck is Temiri? Who is the broom boy? What is my approach to this character that appeared at the end of _The Last Jedi_? _Chapter 21_ will go into more detail about this, as well as the opening few chapters of Part 4.

7\. Has Kylo Ren truly changed, or is this all a game? For this question, the first clues are in _Chapter 16: The Beacerika’s Test_.

8\. Is Rey really evil, or is she just a conflicted girl trying to find her place in the galaxy? This is answered slightly in _Chapter 20: Rey vs. the Supernova Part 1_, but the rest of the puzzle pieces are coming in _Chapter 21_ and Part 4.

9\. What is Rey’s “new” power? This will be answered in _Chapter 21: Rey vs. the Supernova Part 2_.

10\. Who is the main villain of this story? Who do you think it is? For reference, refer to _Chapter 19: Rey’s Destiny_.

11\. Why is _Chapter 15_ called _Tesseract_? In geometry, a tesseract is defined as “the four-dimensional analogue of the cube.” What you should get out of this is the word “four.” Now think about the main characters of this story: Rey, Ben, the Beacerika, and Temiri. “Tesseract” is a symbolic title, and more information about it will also be coming in Part 4.

12\. What is the meaning behind Rey’s Force vision in _Chapter 6: Rey Leaves Supher_? Glimpse through each chapter in the story, and I guarantee that you will figure it out. If you can’t find it, do not fret, for there is still one more part that is coming out.

And finally...

13\. What exactly happened when Rey pulled the latch in the control room during _Chapter 19: Rey’s Destiny_? Answer is coming in Part 4.

I know you have a few other questions than these thirteen, with some regarding the supernova , Lando Calrissian, and the First Order, but I think the thirteen questions above are the most common ones that are swarming around inside every reader’s head, and the ones that will eventually receive answers.


	23. Chapter 21 Rey vs. the Supernova Part 2

Luke, Yoda, and Ben remained in Jakku’s spaceport for a little while longer; at least until _The Robin Hood_ disappeared in Jakku’s atmosphere. Ben seemed to be in a trance. His eyes did not leave the area where the ship disappeared. Already he missed Rey. He wished he could go with her, but he couldn’t. As Luke said. This was _Rey’s_ fight. Not his. However, he felt her. She was scared. No, she was traumatized. She needed somebody to comfort her. She had the Beacerika, sure, but Ben did not know if it was enough.

Only a few minutes later, he heard a wise chuckle under him. Yoda.  
He patted Ben’s leg with his cane, and he sank to his knees in front of him, “Yes, Master Yoda?”  
“Communicate with Rey, you must.” Yoda explained, “Scared, she is. Save the fallen angel, for she will want to come back.”  
“I must give her confidence? Is that what you’re asking?” Ben was not totally used to the way Yoda talked. Once again, he chuckled, and he plopped down next to the young man.  
As Ben peered back into the sky, the alien nodded and answered, “Confidence is quiet in the case of other Jedi, but not in that one. A failure she feels like, yes. Give her confidence, you must. Quiet her fear.”  
“But,” Ben protested, “she doesn’t have her Force abilities. The Emperor stripped her of them.”  
“Oh, he did, didn’t he?” Yoda chuckled a third time, “No use for supernova then. Supernova is no longer important.”  
“What are you saying?”

As the two conversed, Luke backed away from the spaceport and came up with a plan. He had to get the galaxy ready for their most dangerous battle yet, and the only way to do that was to return to Supher. With this in mind, the Force ghost put his hands together and closed his eyes. Within seconds, he faded away and left nothing but Yoda and a very confused, yet intrigued Ben Solo behind.

Temiri didn’t even flinch as General Hux led him and Chewie down one of _The Limpton’s_ hallways. Stormtroopers bumped his back with their blasters to tell him to pick up the pace.  
To Chewie’s annoyance, he roared at them. “Chewie, calm down.” Temiri said without even looking back at him. He followed General Hux’s every movement, and his eyes eventually landed on a lightsaber that hung from his belt. That was the lightsaber he threatened Chewie and Temiri with when he froze them during their battle against the stormtroopers. At Temiri’s request, Chewie calmed down, and he gave the young boy a funny look. “I feel a presence,” he told him, “We are going to get out of this. All the training Master Rey gave me at the Academy, it is time for it to pay off.”

Rey was absolutely horrified. She just made it into space, but she brought _The Robin Hood_ to a halt when she saw it. The supernova. A glowing ball of light in the distance, it was creeping steadily closer to Jakku. Even though it was still quite far away, Rey could already feel its heat. She shook her head as gruesome images of her destroying the whole galaxy invaded her mind.  
With tears streaming down her cheeks, she slapped her hands to her face and whimpered, “I can’t.” Next to her, the Beacerika gave her a funny look. What did Rey mean by, “I can’t?”

“This is too stressful!” she cried out. Here, Rey lowered her hands, and she turned her head in the direction of the Beacerika, whom was sitting on top of her new lightsaber, “I’m sorry, Beacerika, but I can’t do this. I don’t want to turn to the Dark side! I am going to destroy this whole galaxy if I do! Leia fears my power. Finn fears it. Everyone fears it! I am nothing but a disgrace to this galaxy! And now that I know who I am…I just can’t.” After Rey spoke this, she tried to turn _The Robin Hood_ around so she could return to Jakku, but the Beacerika did not let this happen. It jumped off the co-pilot seat and dove for the wheel. It grabbed it with its paws and jerked the ship back in the direction of the supernova. Rey clenched her teeth and closed her eyes as she fought it. “Stop!” she shouted, “I’m going back to Jakku!”  
_“What for?”_ telepathically asked the Beacerika as both it and Rey tugged on the wheel, _“So you can watch the whole planet explode?”_  
“I’m scared!”  
_“I know you are, but this is your destiny!”_  
“I’m scared!!”  
_“I’ll make sure nothing happens to you!”_  
“I'M SCARED!!!” And just like that, Rey let the wheel go. Right as she did, _The Robin Hood_ stalled and rocked back and forth in space. Rey got up from the pilot seat. She headed over to the cockpit’s back wall, with the Beacerika watching her from behind. Stopping in front of it, the young woman put her forehead to it. Sniffing, she whimpered, “I’m scared.”

_“Rey, you need to be more confident,”_ a familiar voice suddenly spoke in her head, and she gasped when she recognized it,  
“Ben?” Sure enough, when Rey took her forehead off the wall and turned, there he was. Rey saw him. She remembered those days leading up to the battle in Snoke’s throne room when she and Ben communicated using the Force. However, Rey thought she didn’t have her Force abilities. Therefore, why were she and Ben connecting with each other?  
She felt him take her hand, and he told her, “You need to travel to the supernova. It is a part of you.”  
“A part of me? What are you talking about?” How was Rey connected to a supernova? She saw no resemblance between it and her.  
That was when she heard another familiar voice off to the side, “That supernova comprises of your lost Force abilities – the abilities the Emperor stole from you when he brought you to Jakku.” Quickly, Rey turned her head, and her eyes widened when she no longer saw the Beacerika. In its place stood a woman who had blue skin, cyan eyes, and black hair with streaks of green and purple in it. The Beacerika…was Aerolin.

Just being here, Temiri shivered. The stormtroopers just pulled him and Chewie into the Supreme Leader’s throne room. Hux sat down in his throne, and Temiri couldn’t help but to notice something sitting on the arm of the chair. It was Kylo Ren’s lightsaber. Temiri recognized the two prongs sticking out from either side of it. He stepped back towards Chewie, but once again, the stormtroopers bumped his back with the butt of their blasters. Temiri tried to run, but they grabbed him and shoved him to the ground.  
The broom boy landed in a heap at Hux’s feet, and he peered into his eyes. “So, the rumors are true,” he spoke, and he grabbed the boy’s arm, “You are indeed Force-sensitive.”  
“What do you want from me?” the little boy asked in an angry voice.  
“Oh, not much. I just don’t like children. Especially children who interfere with my plans.”  
“You may be connected to Rey, but she will never be as heartless as you.”  
“Maybe not, but I do have you.”  
“She _will_ turn back to the Light side. She’s going to destroy you.” Suddenly, Temiri flinched when an eerie pain engulfed his head, and he stumbled backwards. However, he continued to speak, “Release General Hux from your torture, and maybe we’ll be friends.” Behind him, Chewie broke free from the stormtroopers grasps on him, and he hurried towards the little boy. When he saw him coming, General Hux held up his hand and pointed at him. Just like what happened in the ship hanger, Chewie suddenly froze.  
Once again, he looked like a statue. “Chewie!” Temiri yelled.  
He glared at Hux who asked, “We don’t need any Wookies interrupting our big heart-to-heart chat, now do we? Where were we? Oh, yes.” He pulled Temiri next to him, “You can try all you want to stop me, but the girl belongs to me.”  
Still glaring, Temiri said in a stern voice, “Good. This is all going according to plan. You’ve fallen right into our trap.”  
“Oh, really?” cackled Hux, “We’ll see about that. I like you, kid. I think you will fit in nicely here. Rey will definitely need some company once she becomes Empress.”  
“Forget it.” Temiri broke free from Hux’s grip and backed up from the throne. Stormtroopers pointed their blasters at the young boy, but Chewie remained frozen in time. Temiri clenched his fists and told Hux in an angry, stern voice, “I will never join the Dark side…Darth Sidious.”

“Very well.” Hux replied with a glare, “Then I am going to have a lot of fun killing you.” And just like that, a Force ghost suddenly leaped out of General Hux himself. Palpatine. He had taken over Hux’s body, where he declared himself as the new Supreme Leader of the First Order. Unconscious, the real Hux fell off the throne and landed with a splat on the ground next to it. Right when he did, Chewie unfroze, and he too fell to the ground.  
Temiri hurried to him, and he fell to his knees next to the Wookie, “Are you all right, Chewie?” Whimpering, Chewie nodded. Their eyes landed on Palpatine who came towards them, with stormtroopers on either side of him. “Kill us if you must.” Temiri spoke, “But you will never win. Rey exceeds your power. She will banish you to the deepest corner of the Outer Rim.”  
“Then after I kill you, I’ll kill her.”  
“You really would do that to your own granddaughter?”  
“And this…is why I don’t like children!”  
However, just before Palpatine could lift his hand and unleash his Force lightning on Temiri and Chewie, a voice suddenly shouted at him from the throne room’s entrance, “We’ll see about that!” and a sudden blaster bolt pieced Palpatine’s ghost. He stumbled backwards and fell into his throne.

Right when he did, four First Order stormtroopers rushed into the room, and they shot their blasters at Palpatine’s minions. Due to all the noise, General Hux woke up. Gasping, his head shot up from the ground, and sweat trickled down his temples.  
A hand suddenly grabbed his arm, Temiri, and he pulled the weary general up from the floor, “Come on!”  
“What’s going on?!” Hux shouted, and Temiri replied,  
“I’ll tell you later!” As Palpatine’s minions went down, Chewie one by one grabbed blasters and tested them to see which ones he liked. Palpatine stole his bowcaster from him when he captured him and Temiri, and he had no idea where he put it.  
One of the stormtroopers who came to their rescue hurried to Temiri and Hux and shouted, “Go! Go!” in a female voice. Temiri did not have to be asked twice. He took off while another stormtrooper wrapped Hux’s arm around his shoulders. Together, the soldiers, boy, and Wookie hurried out of the throne room and left a very angry Palpatine behind.

Rey yelled as the heat from the supernova started to engulf _The Robin Hood_, the closer she approached it.  
Next to her, Aerolin, who sat in the co-pilot seat like before, yelled at her, “Let the supernova swallow you! For it comprises of your Force abilities!”  
“This is a suicide run!”  
“That’s what it feels like, but it’s not! You’re going to get your new power! Trust me on this!” As Aerolin said this, a huge blast wave given off from the supernova chucked _The Robin Hood_ backwards.  
It spun out of control, but Rey caught it. “Why isn’t it barbecuing us?!” she asked Aerolin, and she replied,  
“It’s because this ship resists supernovas! I used Phonolukamy’s technology to build it!”  
“Phonolukamy?! Why Phonolukamy?!” Sweat streamed down Rey’s face as she steered _The Robin Hood_ back in the direction of the supernova.  
Aerolin soon answered her, “Because the ships on Phonolukamy can survive whatever disaster space throws at them, even supernovas! Now, if you were in that _Millennium Falcon_, you definitely would barbecue! But not in _The Robin Hood_!”  
“What am I supposed to do?”  
“You need to use your lightsaber to suck your powers away from the supernova. Let its light hit you, and it will give you your gift.”  
“Are you sure this isn’t a suicide run?”  
“It’s not! Trust me on this one, Rey! Please!”  
“Okay.” Rey took a deep breath as she tried to slow down her pounding heart. She felt like it was going to come flying right out of her mouth. She thought the Phonolukamy Wormhole was scary, but no! Now she had to go up against some Force-created supernova! Rey knew her post-traumatic stress was going to get even worse from here, but she went ahead and followed Aero’s orders, even though she was traumatized. Like Ben told her through their Force communication, she had to be _confident_. Besides, Aero said that she would keep her safe. Inhaling a breath of air, she grabbed her lightsaber from Aero’s hand and hopped up from her seat.  
Rey moved to the heart of the cockpit. As Aerolin steered _The Robin Hood_ closer to the supernova, she prepared herself. Rey ignited her lightsaber, held it at the ready, and glared.  
She had to do this. “Destiny is not a horse.”

“Now, Rey!” Aerolin yelled. She snapped her hand back to give her a sign. Seeing it, the young woman nodded. Hands sweating, she lifted the lightsaber high over her head and let the light rays from the supernova catch its blades. However, the supernova was not going to return her abilities just like that. That was too easy. Therefore, instead of giving them to her, it let out another huge, gravitational blast wave, which washed through the entire interior of _The Robin Hood_! Boom! It was so powerful that Rey went flying backwards, and she smashed down hard on her right arm! Deactivating, the lightsaber flew from her hand. It winded up hitting the wall across from where she landed.  
Aerolin looked over her shoulder and yelled, “Rey!”

Temiri, Chewie, and the stormtroopers hurried down one of _The Limpton’s_ corridors. They shot at the army of First Order stormtroopers chasing them; more of Palpatine’s minions. Unfortunately, they stumbled upon a dead end at the back of the corridor. A huge door blocked the path. Seeing this, everybody broke off and dove behind a few walls to protect themselves from the troopers’ blasters. Temiri hid with two of the rescue troopers, while the other two, Chewie, and Hux scrunched up behind the second wall. Temiri and his troopers were closest to the door.  
He yelled as another blaster bolt barely missed him. “They’ve got us!” he shouted, “There’s no way out of this!”  
“We’ll see about that!” one of his partners yelled. He pulled a radio off his belt and put it to his lips, yelling, “Artoo-Deetoo! Bee-Bee-Ate, open the door! We’re in Hallway F!”  
“Artoo-Deetoo? Bee-Bee-Ate?” Temiri asked in a confused voice. As he said this, the trooper who just spoke into the radio pulled off his helmet. Temiri couldn’t believe who he was looking at!  
It was Lando Calrissian! “I hate this helmet!” he yelled, and he tossed it to the ground, “It’s too damn hot!”  
“Lando!” Temiri’s jaw dropped. Not only Lando, but the stormtrooper next to him also removed his helmet to reveal Poe Dameron. “Poe!” Temiri shouted, and he quickly turned his head in the direction of Chewie, Hux, and the two other troopers. He assumed they were Rose and Finn, and sure enough, he was right. Just like Poe and Lando, they also removed their helmets. What in the world? How did they get here from Phonolukamy? What were they doing here on _The Limpton_? Now was not the time to be asking questions.

Lando once again brought his radio to his lips and spoke into it,  
“Wise droids! We’re in Hallway F! Not Hallway S! Yamo, make sure they get the right hallway this time!” Yamo? Yamo came too? What in the name of heck was going on right now? Temiri had no idea. All he knew was that the Resistance team, excluding Rey, was back together.

The pain in Rey’s arm was excruciating. Here she thought she was on the road to recovery, and now she felt like she just broke it. What was up with this darn supernova? It did not want to give her back her Force abilities – it wanted to kill her. However, she attempted to give it another go. Straining, the young woman rose to her feet and reached her left hand out to her lightsaber, but the supernova sensed what she was doing and released another blast wave. Like what happened with the lightsaber, Rey crashed into the wall, and she rolled a few feet away from it.  
Shaking her head, she yelled at Aerolin, “I can’t do it! It’s too powerful!”  
“Wait! Don’t give up yet!” Aero shouted at her as she quickly steered _The Robin Hood_ away from one of the supernova’s fire rings, “Leave it to me! I’ll make sure you catch the supernova’s light!”  
“What are you saying? Aero? Aero!” Rey propped up on her elbow and held her hand out to her friend. From out of nowhere, she vanished in midair and appeared outside, in the form of the Beacerika’s space form, the one that attacked Rey in the Phonolukamy Wormhole as well as the _Millennium Falcon_. So, it was true! Aerolin was the Beacerika after all. “Aerolin!” Rey shouted, and she leaped to her feet, “Stop! I need you!” She knew the Beacerika’s plan. The young woman scooped up her lightsaber and hurried to _The Robin Hood’s_ pilot seat. Sitting down, she peered out the window shield to the huge creature hovering between the ship and supernova. “Aerolin!” shouted the young girl, “Don’t do this! Please!”

Suddenly, she heard Aero’s voice.  
Like what happened with Ben earlier, it communicated with her through the Force, “I need to do this, Rey. My mission is complete. What matters now is that you catch your abilities and complete your training.”  
“No!” Rey begged, “Please no!” but the Beacerika shouted,  
“Ignite your lightsaber!”  
“I don’t want to turn to the Dark side!”  
“You need to!” Suddenly, Rey’s lightsaber ignited itself. She gasped when she saw this. She tried deactivating the weapon, but she couldn’t. The lightsaber would not deactivate.

Outside _The Robin Hood_, the Beacerika backed away from the angry supernova.  
Nodding, it whispered, “My work here is complete,” and just like that, it curled into a ball.  
“NO!!!” Rey screamed, but that was the last thing she yelled on the Light side of the Force. The Beacerika/Aerolin threw its whole body into the Jakku Supernova.

After a few more failed attempts, R2 and BB-8 finally opened up the correct door.  
Before Lando, Temiri, Chewie, Poe, Rose, Hux, and Finn knew it, it slid open and revealed _The Limpton’s_ ship hanger. “Let’s go!” Lando shouted at his friends, and he shot one more stormtrooper with his blaster. Everybody rushed through the open door, where they met up with R2, BB-8, and C-3PO at the end of the hallway. Stormtroopers continued to chase them from behind. The friends moved their fastest, and it wasn’t long until they leaped into the ship hanger. There was Yamo.  
He held a blaster of his own and stood on the ramp of the _Millennium Falcon_. “Hurry!” he shouted at everybody.  
They did, except for poor 3PO who never moved that fast. “Wait! Wait!” he shouted. At the sight of him struggling, General Hux came to a screeching stop.  
Turning on his heel, he hurried to the droid and grabbed his arm, “Come on, Wise Gold!” With that, he dragged him to the _Falcon’s_ ramp. 3PO yelled when a blaster bolt from another stormtrooper narrowly missed him. Yamo shoved his back, and the droid yelled again. Tripping, he fell onto his front at the ramp’s head. Temiri pushed the soles of his feet so he could stop blocking the ramp, and he dragged him to a wall in the _Falcon’s_ main hallway. Yamo was the last one to dive into the ship. As quick as a flash, he pulled up its ramp and hurried to the cockpit.  
The hanger’s door started to close, as an attempt to trap the_ Falcon_ inside _The Limpton_. It lifted into the air, with stormtroopers continuing to shoot their blasters at it, and headed towards the diminishing mouth. In the cockpit, Lando, who sat in the pilot seat, pushed the accelerator. He clenched his teeth as the _Falcon_ edged closer and closer to the hanger’s mouth.  
Petrified, Temiri screamed, and he threw himself into Chewie’s furry arms. “We’re going to make it!” Finn shouted, and make it they did. _The Falcon_ flew through the hanger’s mouth at the last second and accelerated into space, leaving _The Limpton_ and Phonolukamy Blockade behind.

Back in the hanger, Emperor Palpatine’s Force ghost appeared on a balcony one level up. He glared when he saw that that piece of junk actually managed to escape. Though mad, he knew this wasn’t it. This wasn’t the end. He would see that ship again, and when he did, he would have a new Darth Vader with him.

KABOOM! The explosion was intense! Rey screamed and closed her eyes as the broken-up supernova chucked its light, her missing Force abilities, into the two blades of her new lightsaber. The pure blast of energy shoved her chair up against the back wall and chucked her forward like a ragdoll. She performed a front-flip, and during the process, sudden Force lightning escaped her fingertips! It smashed into _The Robin Hood’s_ control panel, which caused it to spin like five tops at the same time. It spun so fast; you could barely see it. _The Robin Hood_ somersaulted back in the direction of Jakku as the last of the supernova’s light engulfed Rey’s lightsaber. Her eyes flashed yellow as another bolt of Force lightning escaped her fingertips. That was her new power. Just as Emperor Palpatine said, he had gifted her with something new – something that Rey shared with him. What happened in space proved just how powerful Rey was. Rey, an orphan scavenger from Jakku, was just as powerful as a supernova.

_ **End of Part 3: Jakku** _


	24. Chapter 22 A Growing Threat

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey, everybody! This is an updated version of the first chapter in Part 4. In the past few days, I came to the conclusion that if I stuck with the first draft, the story's pacing would be off. I also felt like I rushed Chapter 22 a bit. I was just so excited after Chapter 21. Therefore, I've gone ahead and edited the chapter so that it does not feel as rushed and actually has a significant impact on Part 4. If you don't want to be confused when I come out with Chapter 23, I recommend you read this, for I have moved a few things around. I also changed the name of the chapter. Resistance Decision will come next. With all that said, let's once again dive into Part 4: The Final Battle!

While General Leia Organa was worried, she was also slightly _relieved_. Rey finally gave herself to Kylo Ren – to the Dark side, and because of her decision, Ben was finally back on the Light side. For Rey and Kylo Ren to switch sides was Step One of the Resistance’s plan to restore peace to the galaxy. Now it was time for Step Two.

After a long day of teaching at the Academy, Leia decided to go for a nice walk down Palm Tree Beach.

Just being here, she remembered the day she and Rey sat on the palm and Leia told the young woman, “Destiny is not a horse.” She felt her aura. While weak, it definitely was more peaceful than the aura she wielded when she was on the Light side. This told Leia that Rey was right where she belonged. Now all she had to do was wait for Ben to return with the Resistance heroes, and from there, she could officially put Step Two in action.

At peace with herself, Leia sat down on the same exact palm she shared with Rey and stared at Supher’s beautiful, orange ocean. She thought about Rey, and then her mind moved over to the Beacerika. If not for the Beacerika, Rey and Ben may have never switched sides. The Beacerika’s duty was to snuff out any Force-sensitive individual struggling between the Light and Dark sides of the Force, and take them on a journey to their true destiny. Leia was proud of it, but also a little sad because she knew it sacrificed itself to save Rey from her own Force abilities – the supernova. She nodded to the ocean and said in a low voice, “Thank you, Beacerika.”

_“Leia,”_ a voice suddenly spoke from off to the side. At the sound of it, Leia jumped slightly, but then she recognized it. She slowly turned her head, and her eyes landed on Luke Skywalker standing next to her. His ghost gave her a feeble smile and came towards her. Leia let him sit down on the palm next to her. He smiled at his sister, and she smiled back.

Then, chuckling slightly, the deceased Jedi spoke just four words, “‘You changed your hair.’”

Leia also chuckled, “You’re still the impetuous kid I knew from my youth.”

This time, Luke laughed and asked, “I am, aren’t I?” Here, he picked up Leia’s hands and gave it a small kiss. “Leia,” he continued, and he gently squeezed it, “It is done.”

“I know it is. Rey did what she had to do. Now we just have to wait until Temiri and Lando return with Ben.”

“We’re going to win this war.” Luke encouragingly told the weary general, “I know we are. Ben will confront Rey, and together, they will take out Palpatine.”

“The Force is balanced,” Leia said with a nod, “and it’s all thanks to Ben, Rey, and the Beacerika.”

“So, what exactly happened to you?” Yamo asked General Hux as the _Millennium Falcon_ jumped to lightspeed.

“It was weird.” Hux admitted. He held a warm drink in his hand and had a blanket over his shoulders, “There I was, minding my own business – being the loser I am, and all of a sudden I am approached by an old coot. He told me that I do not deserve to be the Supreme Leader.”

“Eh, you really don’t.” Rose said with a slightly disgusted look on her face. “Quiet.” Hux begged, “I don’t need ya rubbing it in. Anyway, I refused to give up the throne, so the coot threatened me. Said he would take it by force, and the next thing I know, I’m waking up with that little boy hovering over me.”

“My name is Temiri.” Temiri spoke from one of the common room’s chairs.

Poe Dameron paced back and forth in front of Hux with his arms crossed, “The Emperor possessed you. He’s trying to create a new Darth Vader – a new Galactic Empire.”

“By using Rey,” a stressed-out Finn finished for him, “Not Ben Solo, but Rey.”

“After all, Rey is the Descendant of Evil.” Rose admitted, “There is too much light in Ben.”

In a thoughtful voice, Poe said, “It all makes sense. Rey is just as powerful as a supernova. The whole reason why she’s the Descendant of Evil is because she has a connection with Palpatine.”

Next to him, Lando Calrissian rested his palm on one of the common room’s tabletops and asked, “Why are all the problems in this galaxy due to family issues?” Right as he said that, Chewbacca laughed a little bit. Lando’s words were so true. Slightly glaring at him, he asked the Wookie, “Are you having fun over there, Fuzzy Mc. Muzzy?” Again, Chewie laughed. Fuzzy Mc. Muzzy. He liked that. That was almost as good as Han Solo’s “Fuzz Ball.”

Finn, Rose, and Poe remained serious.

Finn slapped his hands down on the table Temiri sat at and told his friends, “We have to find her.”

“Find her? Find who?” Temiri did not like where this was going.

Finn glanced at him and answered, “Rey.”

“Why?” Instantly, Temiri was on his feet.

Rose stopped next to Finn and took his shoulder, saying, “She needs us.”

“Ben is also on Jakku,” said Poe, “I know he is. After all, he tends to follow her wherever she goes. Therefore, it is only necessary to return to Jakku.”

“We cannot look for Rey.” Temiri explained in a stern voice, “We can look for Ben, but not Rey.”

“Why?” Finn, Rose, and Poe asked at the same time. All three Resistance heroes glanced at the little boy.

“Guys, do you not even realize what’s happened to her?” he asked them, “Rey is on the Dark side now. Zip. End of story.”

“That doesn’t matter!” Finn shouted, and he banged the tabletop with his fist, “She’s still our friend!”

“Guys, we failed our mission once. We’re not going to do it again. This is _not_ what Leia expects from us!” Who knew that Temiri, a ten-year-old boy, could be so intimidating? He gave Rose, Poe, and Finn the evil death glare, “Rey is where she belongs. We need to let her go.”

“Forget it!” Poe also punched the tabletop, “We’re going to Jakku, Temiri, and we’re going to find her!”

“I was afraid you’d say that. Leia was right. You really are an impetuous pilot.”

“Ooh!” Poe turned red from his heels up, but he refused to make a move on this rebellious, little boy. He, Rose, and Poe merely pushed past him and made their way to the _Falcon’s_ cockpit.

Behind, Temiri crossed his arms.

He exchanged glances with Lando, Yamo, Hux, and Chewie, and admitted, “Rey is not going to be the downfall of this galaxy. Nor is Kylo Ren, and nor is the Emperor. It’s going to be those three.” They could not help but to agree with him.

When the _Millennium Falcon_ jumped out of lightspeed, there was Jakku, back to the normal planet it was before. An exploding star no longer threatened it, since Rey swallowed the supernova’s energy, but it did not mean it was out of danger. In fact, something else was coming for it, and it was all because Rey pulled the switch in the computer’s control room. Poe landed the _Falcon_ in one of Jakku’s deserts, the Koewika (Ko-we-ka) Desert, and shut her down. Blasters in hand, he, Rose, and Poe were the first ones to head down the ship’s ramp. Chewie and Temiri went with them, but Lando and Yamo stayed behind. They had a few more questions for General Hux. Besides, after losing the _Millennium Falcon_ to Han Solo so many years ago, Lando was just too proud to let her go.

As the five friends left the _Falcon_, he hugged her control panel and whispered, “It’s okay, baby.”

Finn, Rose, Poe, Chewie, and Temiri searched the Koewika Desert for a good hour and a half, but they found nothing. Other than an occasional oasis or two, the area was completely empty. It was so quiet, it was suspicious. Finn, Rose, and Poe held their blasters at the ready while Chewie protectively held his arm up to Temiri’s chest. They walked for another ten minutes, and then Finn saw it. Further ahead of he and his friends was a bundle, which was disabled and smoking.

From out of nowhere, Finn shouted, “_The Robin Hood_!” and he sprinted to the wreck. Rose, Poe, Temiri, and Chewie followed him. When they reached the smoking, disabled _Robin Hood_, Finn, Rose, and Poe fell to their knees and started to dig through the debris. They knew this was the ship Rey flew for her battle against the supernova. Temiri told them. As he pulled debris from the wreck, Finn called for Rey, “Rey! Rey, are you in there?” No answer. He tried again, “Rey!” No answer. “Where is she?!” frightfully asked the young man. There was nothing that indicated she may be trapped under all the debris. After a little more digging around, Rose and Poe backed up from the wreck, and together with Temiri and Chewie, they started to survey the area. Finn remained at the wreck.

Temiri wasn’t really looking. Instead, he froze on his tracks and stared at the horizon when he felt something unsettling. He couldn’t help but to feel like something was coming for him and his friends, but what was it? Whatever it was, it was enough to make Temiri feel uncomfortable.

Just before Finn could give up searching the wrecked _Robin Hood_ for Rey, Rose called to him from the top of a hill,

“Finn!” At her voice, Finn looked up and saw her waving him over.

Quickly, he got up from _The Robin Hood_ and joined her at the top of the hill, “What is it, Rose?” Rose did not speak. She merely closed her eyes and pointed ahead to Jakku’s wide-open spaces.

Finn looked in the direction she was pointing and instantly, he broke down in sweat, “Rey!” Sure enough, there was Rey. She was lying unconscious in the sand.

Finn wasted no time. He sprinted down the hill, with his friends following him, and came within reach of her. Even Temiri came, only because he had a feeling they were in danger.

Finn fell to his knees next to Rey and grabbed her arm, “Rey!” She let out a small, painful grunt as he held her in his arms, “Rey! Rey! Please no!” He gave her cheek a small slap, but she did not open her eyes.

It wasn’t long until Finn felt Rose take his shoulder, and she spoke in a worried voice, “Finn, her arm.” When the supernova threw her into the floor during her battle, the impact totally messed up Rey’s arm.

It looked broken, and if it was, Finn was going to give that supernova a piece of his mind! “What did that supernova do to her?” he shouted in an angry voice.

“Finn, Finn, calm down.” Rose once again took his shoulder, “We can help her.”

“Help her?!” asked Temiri, “How many times do I have to tell you guys?! If and when she wakes up, she’ll be on the Dark side!”

Finn peered over his shoulder and glared at him, “So, what are you saying? That we just leave her here?”

Temiri shrugged and answered, “Yeah. That’s exactly what I’m saying.”

“Temiri, what is wrong with you?!” Finn gently set his friend back down on the sand and rose to his feet. As he stomped to Temiri, Poe was the next one to sink down next to Rey. Finn stopped in front of Temiri and clenched his fists, “Rey’s hurt! Her arm may be broken, and you’re saying we should just leave her?!”

“If we’re going to protect the Resistance, then it’s the best thing for us. Guys, Rey is just as powerful as a supernova. If we take her back to Supher, she is going to destroy the whole Resistance.”

“She’s hurt!” Quickly, Finn pulled his attention away from the little boy and focused it on Chewie instead, “Chewie, we need to get her back to the _Falcon_!”

“We don’t ‘need’ to,” said Temiri, “She is super dangerous, guys. Just leave her be.”

“You’re treating her like she’s some kind of animal!” Finn snapped.

“Well, excuse me.” Holding up his hands, Temiri backed away from the angry, young man, “I’m just trying to protect the Resistance.”

“You know, I thought I liked you at first.” Still glaring, Finn placed his hands on his hips.

“Well if you hate me, you hate me,” said Temiri, “All I’m saying is that we’re not supposed to bring Rey back to Supher. We’re supposed to bring Kylo Ren.”

“Kylo Ren! Kylo Ren! Why is it always Kylo Ren?! He got us in this situation in the first place! Chewie!” Finn stomped his foot and whirled around to the trembling Wookie, “We need to get her back to the _Falcon_!”

“Fine. That’s your decision.” Temiri spoke in a stern voice, “But you’re going to regret it in the future.” Finn, Rose, and Poe did not care. They just wanted old Rey back. They did not like new Rey.

Everybody moved aside and let Chewie come within reach of her. He prepared to pick her up, but just before he could, the friends heard the roars of spaceships. Gasping, everybody whirled around to see an army of TIE Fighters coming straight for them. They whipped up sand as they flew and readied their guns. Finn leaped in front of Rey to protect her and held his arms out to his sides. Sweat trickled down his temples, but it was not just because of the heat. He was frightened.

As the TIEs closed in on the six friends, Temiri threw his hand back. In an angry voice, he told Finn, Rose, and Poe, “And this, is why you should have let Rey be.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> End of Chapter Note: I know I am hurting Rey a lot, guys, but I’m doing it for a very specific reason. Part of this has to do with the plot of the story, while another part of it has to do with my writing style. My motto whenever I write is that “a hero is not a true hero unless they get hurt at least once.” I have a nasty habit of torturing the characters I love, and the ones who I torture the most are usually my favorites, which that alone should tell you that I absolutely love Rey. The whole reason why I’m writing this note is because I want to make it very clear that I’m hurting Rey for a reason. Please do not move away from the story because of this, because I am working very hard to give you guys an amazing adventure.
> 
> Sincerely,  
The Writing Nerd


	25. Chapter 23 Resistance Decision

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey, guys, I'll be honest. This was one of the hardest chapters to write in this whole story. I nearly cried. I love Rey, but I did what I think is best for her. This chapter has a very, very powerful message in it, something that we will all have to eventually experience in our own lives. We fight the battle together, but at the end of the day, everything boils down to a decision - one that with either win the battle, or not. One of the most powerful weapons in the world, aside from love, is sacrifice. Something beautiful is going to come out of this, I promise, but for now, the Resistance heroes have to make a very difficult decision.

"Run! Run!" Finn shouted at his friends. They did not have to be asked twice. Everybody took off running, but they accidentally left Rey behind.  
Poe was the first one who noticed this, "Wait! We're missing someone!"  
"Rey!" Finn screeched to a stop and hurried back in the direction of his friend.  
Temiri tried to stop him, "Stop, Finn! Just leave her be! They're here for her!" but Finn did not listen. Temiri couldn't say anymore because he and the remaining friends had to dive behind some rocks when the TIEs started shooting their guns at them.  
Finn ran through the gunfire and fell to his knees next to Rey, "You're going to be okay, Rey! You're going to be okay!" He yelled when one gun narrowly missed him, but he went ahead and put Rey on his back.  
As he made his way to the rock structures his friends hid behind, Temiri shook his head and said, "He's impossible. Right, Chewie?" but when he turned around, Chewie was nowhere to be seen, "Chewie? Chewie!" Where was Chewie? He just vanished!

  
Lando Calrissian and Yamo were in the _Millennium Falcon's_ guest room where they kept General Hux company by asking him a series of questions.  
Questions like, "How did a scrawny fella like you join the First Order? How did you become a general when you were gullible enough to let a ghost take advantage over you? Why did Kylo Ren put you in charge and not someone else when he started his mission?" This went on and on. Hux, who did not feel like talking right now, just wrapped his blanket tighter around his shoulders.  
He just said two words, "Shut up," but then a frenzy of panicked roars suddenly came from the _Falcon's_ ramp.  
"Chewie?" Lando asked. With Yamo, Hux, and the droids on his heels, they left the guest room and hurried to the ramp. There was Chewbacca. "What's wrong, Fuzzy Mc. Muzzy?" Lando wanted to know. Chewie was too panicked to laugh at the joke this time. He continued to roar, and he pointed in the direction where he, Rose, Poe, Finn, and Temiri went on their search for Rey. Lando, who's eyes widened with every passing second, finally said, "They didn't! Gentlemen!" Stomping his foot, he whirled around to face Hux and Yamo, "Grab your blasters. We're going to war."

  
"Here, take her!" Finn yelled when he reached the rock Poe and Rose were hiding behind, "Just keep her safe!" He slid Rey off his back, and Poe grabbed her. Then, with blaster in hand, Finn threw himself into the fray. He was not going to let the Emperor take Rey. However, he was unaware that it was Rey herself who led them here, and it was all because she pulled that switch in the computer room. Finn pointed his blaster at the incoming TIEs and yelled, "This is for Rey!"  
"Finn, stop!" Rose screamed from behind the rock, "You're going to get yourself killed!"  
"As long as Rey's safe, I don't care!" Finn yelled back.

  
Rey felt the TIEs coming for her. She had to go to them. She didn't belong here. She belonged on the Dark side. She started to stir in Poe's arms, and he peered down on her,  
"Rey! Rose, I think she's waking up!" Rey knew her friends had her, but she was scared that if she jumped back into full consciousness, her new powers would destroy them. Therefore, she refused to open her eyes. She just shuffled uncomfortably as she tried to resist the urge to throw her friends back with a Force shove. All and all, another reason they should have just let her be.  
Poe tried to calm her down, "Rey! Calm down! You're safe with us." No, she wasn't. Her friends should have not found her in the first place. Aside from fear, her arm also hurt her.

  
Just before the TIEs could blast Finn to smithereens, from off to the side appeared a new ship, and it shot down the TIE that was coming for him. Following close behind it was the _Millennium Falcon_. Finn ducked under the disabled TIE that flew over his head and crashed into a rock structure further down the Koewika Desert. BOOM! A blast of smoke shot into the atmosphere.  
When he saw who was driving the ship that saved his life, Finn's entire face brightened, "Kylo Ren!" Sure enough, it was Kylo Ren. He sensed what was happening at the Desert Resort and quickly picked up a ship, so he could come to the Resistance's assistance. Along the way, he ran into the _Millennium Falcon_, and they decided to work together. Ben stooped down towards the desert while the _Falcon_ zoomed past him and started to shoot down TIEs. In her cockpit, Lando was having the time of his life. He did not know why it was so satisfying to take out TIEs. Chewie was having just as much fun as him, as was Yamo, but Hux looked like he was about to toss his cookies.

  
Ben Solo landed his ship behind another rock structure, and he quickly disembarked it. With lightsaber in hand, he hurried to Rose and Poe.  
At the sight of him, their eyes widened, and they yelled, "Ben!" at the same time. Finn also saw the ex-Sith. He shot one of the TIEs in the engine and disabled it. As the ship fell from the sky, he dove back behind the rock structure with Rose and Poe. Temiri tried to join them, but he couldn't without getting shot at. Rey was having an extremely hard time fighting the urge to attack her own friends.  
It got to the point that all three troublesome Resistance heroes had to grab her – she was twitching so much. "Please, Rey." Poe begged, "Please calm down." At this point, Ben made it to them.  
Just at the sight of Rey injured, he felt a pinch of anger in his system, and he clenched his teeth. "Let's go to my ship," he told the Resistance heroes, "We need to help the _Falcon_."

  
"But what about Rey?" Finn asked, "We can't leave her!"  
That was when Temiri yelled at them from his own rock structure, "We certainly can leave her! The First Order will stop attacking us if we do!"  
"She's our friend!" Finn shouted back, "And friends never leave each other in the dark! Tell him, Ben!" However, Ben seemed to be floating in the same boat as Temiri.  
He clenched his fists and told the scared heroes, "Guys, it is just as hard for me as it is for you, but at the end of the day, the Emperor _needs_ to have Rey. This is the only way how we're going to restore peace to the galaxy. We _need_ to let her go. True friends know what is best for each other, and right now, turning Rey over to the Emperor is the best thing for her."  
"But she's hurt!" Finn argued as a few tears rolled down his cheeks, "Her arm is broken!"  
"We _need_ to let her go." Ben repeated, "Come on, guys, we don't have time to sit around and argue about this. The _Falcon_ can only take out so many TIEs."  
"No!" While Poe and Rose managed to pull themselves away from Rey, Finn stayed with her. He pulled her into a hug and sobbed, "I'm not going to let her go!"  
"Finn, please." Rose took his shoulder, "Kylo's right, and so is Temiri. We should have just let her be."  
"No!" Finn refused to leave his friend's side, "Rey is my friend! She's the first friend I met here on Jakku!" However, as he said this, Rey suddenly yelled. She continued to twitch, and she shook her head as she did so. She couldn't attack her own friends! She just couldn't! But she may have to if the stress continues to bombard her. Ben, who saw she was about to attack, tightened his grip on his lightsaber hilt. Poe and Rose grabbed Finn and pulled him away from Rey. "No!" he begged as they dragged him on the sand, "Rey!" He held his hand out to her, "Rey!!" Ben Solo jumped in front of the three Resistance heroes and glanced over his shoulder to Temiri. He gave him a quick nod, and Temiri returned it. The little boy backed up from his rock and hurried to Rose, Poe, and Finn. Rose and Poe finally managed to pull Finn to his feet, but he kept on trying to break free so he could return to Rey. They pulled him back.

  
Before he joined them, Ben said one last thing to young Rey. He put his lightsaber on his belt and kneeled to her.  
He picked up her hand and gave it a gentle squeeze, "Rey, this is the best thing for you. I'm going to turn you back to the Light side, but only when the time is right. You are a girl of many wonders and a girl who has forever changed me. I am proud to call you my friend." Here, he closed his eyes and bumped his forehead up against Rey's, "But this is your fight." Then, just like that, he let her hand go and stood up. No longer being pressured by her friends, Rey calmed down. As Ben backed away from her, she fell onto her side in the sand. Seeing this, Finn once again tried to run back to her, but his friends stopped him. Ben led them to his ship, and the hatch opened to let the four friends in. Ben was the last one to climb aboard. He glanced at Rey one last time and nodded, "Destiny is not a horse." And just like that, he climbed aboard his ship.

  
The _Millennium Falcon_ continued to take out TIEs, but then, Lando noticed that they were no longer attacking them. Instead, they all made their way towards the rock structures the Resistance heroes hid behind. The ship Ben landed lifted into the sky. As it flew away and passed the rock structures from up above, Finn peered out the window. He saw that the largest TIE in the bunch land next to the rock structure where he and his friends just were, and a ghostly figure emerged from it. Palpatine. The last thing he saw before the ship took off to the meet the _Falcon_ was the evil man carrying Rey, his best friend, and he pulled her into his TIE.  
In the _Falcon_, Yamo pointed at Ben's ship and said,  
"They're coming. Once they meet us, we will pull Finn, Rose, Temiri, and Poe aboard, and then lead Ben to Supher."  
"It is done." Lando spoke in a slow voice. He nodded and took a deep breath, Chewie as well. Then, exchanging glances with the Wookie, Lukaemian, and First Order general, the smuggler told them, "Mission complete. It's time to return to Supher."


	26. Chapter 24 The Last Sith

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Note: Yes! Finally, it's done! My thanks goes to The Rise of Skywalker that helped me finally find the inspiration to continue my story. Sorry, guys. I know it's been forever since I've uploaded a chapter, but that's because I have had one of the worst cases of writer's block in my entire life! School was also really, really busy for me this year, since it was my first semester of college. But here I am, and I hope I can get back into a regular routine of trying to finish this story. Thank you so much for your patience, and May the Force be with You!

Finn felt like his heart had snapped in two. Giving up Rey was one of the hardest things he’s done in his entire life. If not, it was the hardest. He was a traitor. He’s never seen Rey that hurt before, and he could do nothing to help her. A good friend never walks away when something happens to their BFF. That’s why they were BFFs. Finn just couldn’t accept the fact that Rey was on the Dark side now. He was confident she wouldn’t turn, but she proved him wrong.  
Finn wanted nothing to do with the others. He spent a good few hours reading the ancient Jedi texts in the Millennium Falcon’s lounge, hoping he could find something to bring Rey back to the Light side. There was nothing. Or rather, Finn couldn’t find anything because of his lack of Jedi knowledge.  
Strangely, something happened to him while he was studying. He heard Rey.  
Rey called him through the Force, a sadness in her voice but also a pinch of excitement. “Finn.”  
“Rey? Rey!” Instantly, Finn jumped to his feet. Was Rey truly talking to him? But how? He thought only Force-sensitive people could communicate with a Force bond.  
Rey apologized to him. “I’m sorry, but I don’t belong in the Resistance. My destiny lies with my grandfather.”  
“Rey, don’t say things like that! We’re going to save you!” Finn cried out.  
“You don’t need to. This is who I am,” said Rey.  
“Don’t give up hope.” It took Finn a mere second to figure out he was speaking in a desperate tone.  
“I’m sorry, Finn.” Then, just like that, Rey left his mind.  
Finn was so confused right now, but he knew it was Rey who had talked to him. Wait a minute, did this mean he was Force-sensitive? Is that why he felt so connected to Rey? Just thinking about this gave him a headache.  
He looked like a zombie when he returned to the Falcon’s cockpit.  
In a sweet voice, Rose asked him, “Are you okay, Finn?”  
“Yeah, I’m just trying to figure something out,” was Finn’s response, and he slumped down in the seat behind Chewie, Lando, and Yamo. He brought his hand to his chin as he tried to make sense of what just happened in the lounge. If he indeed was Force-sensitive, then perhaps he could come up with a plan to help Kylo win back Rey. Was there truly more hope than he thought there was? Finn just did not know.

***  
Rey did not want to wake up, but then she told herself that sleeping would not help the war. After the Emperor captured her, he took her back to The Limpton. After all, it was he who highjacked it in the first place.  
The room he gave her was dark but comfortable. She had a view of space, a decent-sized bed, and her own chest of blasters and lightsabers to choose from. It was like Granddaddy was expecting her.  
Rey breathed steadily from her bed as she started to shuffle and stir. It took her a minute to make sense of where she was, but when she did, she sat up. A blanket fell from her shoulder, landing on her thighs. Around her shoulders was the cape she found on Phonolukamy, and a black cloth now covered the Beacerika’s wound on her arm. Rey felt the Dark side of the Force, but it did not hurt her. This was who she was. She was Rey Palpatine. Although, she still couldn’t help but to feel scarred by her true lineage. Palpatine frightened her, but maybe she would learn to like him the longer she stayed here. She highly doubted that. How could she be related to someone as heartless as him?  
Rey knew she was on the Dark side now, but she still felt light. A lump formed in her throat, and she gulped when an eerie figure appeared in her doorway. Palpatine.  
“‘Long have I waited, for my grandchild to come home,’” he cackled.  
Rey had to be brave, but goosebumps still popped up on her arms. Sweat trickled down her face, and her breathing intensified. She was terrified. Knees knocking together, she slid out of bed and backed away from Palpatine.  
“You don’t need to be afraid,” he told her, “We are more alike than you think. You hold the gift of all the Sith within you – a ‘thousand generations’ – something that you share with me.”  
“What do you want?” Rey asked in a brave voice.  
“Not much. In order to complete your training, you must travel to Supher and take out the Resistance base.”  
Destroy the Resistance base on Supher? But Rey’s friends were there!  
“Can I at least save my friends?” she asked Palpatine.  
“Your friends are your weakness,” was his answer, “Either you destroy the base, or I will kill you.”  
Kill her? Would Palpatine really kill his own granddaughter? Rey had a pretty good feeling about it, knowing the kind of man he was. He didn’t care about her. He just wanted to use her to create a new Galactic Empire.  
“Did you kill my parents?” she asked.  
Palpatine did not need to speak for her to understand his answer. His cackle said it all, and this was when Rey struck.  
She attacked out of anger, fear, and stress. Rey lifted her hands and launched Force lightning at Palpatine. However, since he was a Force ghost, it didn’t even faze him. Instead, the lightning destroyed the chest of blasters and lightsabers in the corner of the room. Rey tried again, and she made sure this round of Force lightning was even more powerful than the last. Again, nothing happened, and Palpatine floated towards her. Rey sensed what he was about to do. He was going to try to take over her body like he did with Hux, and force her to become Empress.  
“No, please,” she whimpered. Rey held her left hand out to the pile of sabers and blasters and called one saber over. It landed right in her palm, and Rey ignited its red blade.  
To her surprise, Palpatine ignited a red lightsaber of his own. Hold on, did that mean Force ghosts could still handle a weapon? Rey did not have time to ponder this question because Palpatine thrusted his lightsaber at her and she had to block it. The two blades met, causing a fight to break out between granddaughter and grandfather.  
Rey fought with all her strength, but it was difficult with her injured arm. She took a defensive approach to Palpatine, rather than an offensive. She ducked under his lightsaber blade and slid behind her bed to hide.  
“A Sith does not hide from her enemy. She fights, whether she wants to or not.” Palpatine explained to her.  
He was right. Rey couldn’t cower before him. She had to fight, and she tried, but he overpowered her. Palpatine snatched her lightsaber from her hand and used a Force shove to chuck her into the room’s wall. Broken and bleeding, Rey fell to the ground and groaned. This was one battle she was not going to win. She may have beat Kylo Ren on Starkiller Base, but she could not beat Palpatine.  
“You’re going to become Empress,” he snarled, “‘It’s in your blood. Our blood.’”  
“And I thought Kylo Ren was a monster!” Rey snapped. “You can possess me, but the last Jedi will save me!”  
“Not while I’m present. You’re going to destroy him, as well as the whole Resistance.”  
“I’m not talking about Kylo Ren! He is not my final hope!” Rey could say no more because Palpatine made his move. While she was down, he flew into her body, possessed her, and turned her into the next Empress. The battle was lost. Evil had won, but Rey did not scream. This was her destiny. She knew it was, but she also knew that the true last Jedi would free her from this Hell. She just had to be patient. Her eyes flashed yellow as she sucked in her grandfather’s life form, turning her into not the last Jedi, but the last Sith. It turned out the cape she possessed belonged to Palpatine all along. He left it on Phonolukamy for her to find because as he said, it completed her training. More and more power found its way into the young woman’s body, and it gave her the strength to stand up. No longer did she hold the lightsaber she started with in her hand. Instead, she held Palpatine’s.  
She used her new powers to destroy her room and stepped outside to The Limpton’s hallway where she was confronted by a group of Sith Troopers. They looked like regular stormtroopers but wore red instead of white. They bowed to their new Empress and welcomed her into their home.  
Rey, who had her hood on her head, demanded, “We leave for Supher. Now!”  
“As you wish, Empress Palpatine,” said the Sith Troopers. Quickly, they scooped up their weapons and followed behind Rey as she made her way to The Limpton’s bridge. She could hear Palpatine laughing inside her, confident that he had won when deep down, she knew he was far from winning. The last Jedi would come to her rescue. It wasn’t her, and it wasn’t even Ben. It was Finn.

***

“Seriously, Finn, what is wrong with you?” Rose asked Finn during the last leg of the Falcon’s journey back to Supher.  
“Nothing. I’m just fine.” But Finn was far from fine. Something inside told him that Rey was no longer the kind, orphan scavenger he met on Jakku but the new Empress of the galaxy. He wasn’t the only one who knew this. Temiri did too. By prophecy, two more people were destined to aid Kylo Ren in his fight to save Rey: him and Finn.

***

“You feel it too?” Temiri asked Finn who was later sitting in one of the Falcon’s gunner chairs. It was easier to think here than in the cockpit.  
“Temiri, I need to ask you something,” the young man nervously told the child. He peered outside to space and took a deep breath as he tried to find his words. “Am-Am I Force-sensitive?”  
Temiri was quiet for a minute. He could not bring himself to say anything.  
“Please, I need to know,” said Finn.  
“I know, but I wasn’t going to tell you until we returned to Supher.” Temiri sighed and settled down next to Finn’s arm. “Yes. You are Force-sensitive.”

***

Kylo Ren also knew Rey just became Empress. In the cockpit of his own ship, he tightened his grip on his steering wheel right when the Force message found its way into his brain. No, there was still hope. Rey would not destroy the Resistance. Not if three Jedi took her on. She may be Palpatine’s granddaughter, but she was not invincible. There was definitely light in her. If Ben could redeem himself, so could she. He just had to come up with a plan to defeat the dark entity that made her the Empress, and the most feared person in all the galaxy. Rey Palpatine.


	27. Chapter 25 The Past is in the Past

“So that’s Supher?” Ben communicated to the Millennium Falcon.  
“Yes.” Rose replied with a slow nod of her head, “That is where the Resistance base is.”  
“Is my mother there?”  
It was Lando who answered Ben’s question here. “Let’s just say she’s looking forward to your homecoming.”  
Sure enough, Leia, Shudu, Akinli, Beatrice, and a group of Resistance heroes were waiting in the spaceport when the Falcon dropped in for landing. The children jumped with excitement, assuming Rey was on it.  
However, it wasn’t Rey who walked down the Falcon’s ramp but Lando, Chewie, Yamo, Hux, Rose, Poe, Finn, Temiri, and the droids. Kylo Ren was a bit nervous to crawl out of his own ship, because he didn’t know how the Resistance would react when they saw him.  
Noticing that Rey wasn’t part of the group, the children asked at the same time, “Where’s Master Rey? We thought she was with you guys.”  
“Well, she’s not! Okay?!” Finn snapped. Just as he said that, his mind returned to when he and his friends found Rey unconscious on Jakku.  
Akinli, Beatrice, and Shudu jumped when he raised his voice. Why did he get so angry all of a sudden? Did something happen to Rey?  
Leia kept a close eye on Finn who left the homecoming and headed towards Palm Tree Beach. To Po, Rose, Yamo, Chewie, Temiri, Lando, and Hux, she begged, “Tell me everything that happened.”

***  
Ben could not bring himself to join the Resistance, even though he had redeemed himself. They were going to get on his case and call him a monster. He was sure of it. Why did he decide to come here again when Rey was in danger? Inhaling a breath of air, he tried communicating with her through another Force bond.

***  
Rey’s head burst into pain when she heard Ben. Together with a few Sith Troopers, she was standing in The Limpton’s bridge with her hood still over her head. Her right arm tingled as she tried to remember why she was here in the first place. The Beacerika. It led her here. It led her to her destiny, but why did she still feel like she didn’t belong? Rey had to tell herself that she was not evil. She was just a conflicted child trying to find her place in the galaxy.  
Ben tried to reason with her. “Rey, don’t let Palpatine win. I know you. I may be the monster here, but you’re not. Palpatine is trying to kill you so he can remain in power. He’s using you as bait, and when the time comes, I’m afraid I won’t be there to save you.”  
“Stop it! Stop it! Why would my grandfather kill his own granddaughter?!” Rey frustratingly yelled.  
Next to her, a Sith Trooper asked, “Is everything all right, Empress?”  
Rey never got a chance to answer him. There was too much going on right now. Not only that, but she froze when she thought she heard a cry for help. It came from one of the hallways that branched off from The Limpton’s bridge.  
“Do you hear it too?” asked Kylo Ren, “Those are the cries of the First Order troopers and passengers whom Palpatine possessed and hid them somewhere in the ship. They need somebody to save them, and you’re the only one there.”  
Again, Rey heard the screams. No! If she tried to save the troops and passengers, then Palpatine would unleash his Force lightning on her again. That was what nearly killed her on Jakku.  
I’m not going to save them, Ben.” Nonetheless, fear was in Rey’s voice.  
Ben sensed it. “And that’s your weakness, your fear. You are too scared to confront your evil grandfather after what he did to you on Jakku. You’re shaken by your Sith lineage, which I understand, but you have to come out of your shell. To be a Palpatine does not mean you have to be evil! Rey, you need to learn to fight your fears.”  
He had a point. Fear was never a good power for a Jedi. Rey thought about this for a moment, and then she excused herself from the Sith Troopers. The screams she’s been hearing led her to one of the darkest hallways in The Limpton. Just staring at it, Rey felt like she was staring into the unknown. Taking a deep breath, she pulled her hood off her head.  
“You can do this, Rey.” Ben said.  
Hearing him, Rey nodded and lifted her foot. Without another word, she vanished into the unknown that was this mysterious hallway.

***  
Back on Supher, Ben snapped out of his trance when somebody spoke up behind him.  
“She’s struggling, isn’t she?” The voice belonged to General Leia Organa. The Force led her to her son’s ship, and now here she was.  
“Mom.” Ben spoke in a low voice without even looking back at her.  
She chuckled and ordered, “Let’s go find the last Jedi.”

***  
Finn just made it to Palm Tree Beach with at least an hour of sunlight left to spare. While there, he tried practicing the Force. He dug his feet into the fluffy, white sand and held his hand out to a pile of coconuts. However, none of them lifted into the air. This made no sense. How the heck did Rey do it? Hot air blasted Finn’s shoulders, causing him to sweat. He kept on trying, but like Luke Skywalker before him, he was impatient. Because of this, he still could not lift the coconuts.  
Finally, Finn just gave up. He pulled back his hand and sank to his knees in the sand. Temiri was wrong. He wasn’t Force-sensitive. The conversation he had with Rey in the Falcon was merely the work of his imagination. He was so torn apart by the Resistance’s decision to leave Rey broken and unconscious on Jakku that he thought it was his fault. After all, it was he who tried to stop her when she ran off after she and he met Lando, but Leia stopped him, and Finn let her. The guilt Finn felt was incredible, but while he sat there in the cooling sand, a memory engulfed his mind.  
He saw Rey and remembered when she knocked him down with her staff in Niima Outpost. He remembered when they first boarded the Millennium Falcon, met Han Solo, and fought Kylo Ren in the forest. He then remembered the joy he felt when he and the other Resistance heroes saw her lift the rocks during the Battle of Crait. Finally, he recalled talking to her just before Lando crash-landed in the No-Ela Lagoon. After telling her that Leia was going to give her another chance, her entire face just brightened. Finn still felt her arms around him when she hugged him thank you. Thoughts about Rey strengthened Finn, and he even laughed a little bit. Everything changed when she went to Dark Side Island, but deep down, Finn knew she was still the kind-hearted scavenger he met on Jakku.  
He crossed his legs, closed his eyes, and placed his hands in his lap as more memories bombarded him. The past is in the past. This was the future, and Rey needed him. She needed Ben, Finn, and Temiri if she had any hope to return to the Light side of the Force. While Finn thought about this, slowly and carefully, the coconuts one by one started to lift from the pile, but he was unaware of this. Also, three figures appeared behind him: Leia, Ben, and Temiri.  
They watched the young man open-mouthed. It was Rey who unlocked Finn’s Force abilities. Kylo Ren unlocked hers, and she returned the favor.  
Leia, who held a lightsaber in her hand, nodded to Ben and Temiri, saying, “The Force is strong with him.”  
“Let’s do this.” Temiri spoke. “It is time for us to train.”

***  
On her way down the Sith Hallway, Rey ran her palm across its smooth walls. She listened for the First Order’s pleas, only to find herself even more nervous than she already was.  
Inside her, Palpatine realized what she was doing, and he unleashed his power. Just like what happened on Jakku, Rey yelled when a wave of excruciating pain broke across her whole body. She fell to her hands and knees and begged for Palpatine to stop punishing her, but he kept at it. Too frightened to go any further, Rey retreated back towards the hallway’s entrance. The pain left, but she still shivered. She couldn’t do this. Palpatine was going to kill her if she tried to free the First Order. She had to remain on her course for Supher in order to make him happy. He was the only family she had left.  
Sitting here, she suddenly had a flashback of her parents. Within it, Rey was a child, and her parents just dropped her off on Jakku. Her mother, a beautiful woman who looked just like her, hugged her close to her chest.  
Tears streamed down her cheeks as she told her young daughter, “‘Rey, be brave.’”  
Little Rey nodded, even though she couldn’t make total sense of what was going on right now.  
The next person to enter her vision was her father, or in better words, the son of Emperor Palpatine.  
“‘You’ll be safe here. I promise,’” he said, and he rubbed Rey’s cheek with his index finger.  
In the background, Rey heard the evil cackle of Emperor Palpatine. He was looking for her. That was why her parents abandoned her on Jakku. They wanted to protect their daughter from her grandfather, just as Obi Wan hid Luke and Leia to protect them from Darth Vader. Her parents sacrificed themselves to save her. It didn’t matter if her grandfather was the evilest man in the galaxy. What mattered most to Rey’s parents was Rey herself. She was their “Stardust.”  
Thinking about this, she decided to head back down the Sith Tunnel. For the second time, Palpatine punished her, but Rey pushed right through the pain.  
She remembered her mother’s words, “‘Rey, be brave,’” and repeated them to herself as she kept on moving. Palpatine’s punishment grew worse, causing her vision to blur, but she kept on fighting until she finally reached the end of the hallway. By then, Palpatine had stolen all her strength, and she collapsed to her side, right in front of a group of cages and gates.  
Weakened by Palpatine’s punishment, she said in a hoarse voice, “I don’t belong here.” However, she still had just enough strength to lift her head and peer into the many different cages and gates that surrounded her. What she saw shocked her, but she wasn’t able to get a good look because she closed her eyes and ended up lying half-dead in the Sith Tunnel.

***  
Finn felt her pain. “No! Rey!”  
Leia, Temiri, and Ben Solo felt it too.  
“We’re too late.” Temiri cried, but Leia quickly shook her head no.  
“No! There’s no such thing as too late! Buckle up, boys! We have a long day of training ahead of us.”  
“But Rey’s dying!” Finn shouted.  
Next to him and Temiri, Ben Solo crossed his arms.  
“We’re going to save her. I know we are. We just need to come up with a plan to take back The Limpton from the First Order.”  
“Correct. And that is what I’m going to teach you boys,” said Leia.


	28. Chapter 26 The Grey Jedi

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello, everybody, this is the official Chapter 26! I've made some significant changes to it, so I encourage that if you read the original Chapter 26, Leia's Teachings, that you need to read the updated version. Hope you enjoy it, and may the Force be with you!
> 
> Sincerely,  
VikaFromTheMood

“What do you mean train us?” Finn asked Leia.  
“I may be old, but I’ve still got it in me.” Leia said with a small chuckle. “Besides, Finn, you and Ben are the only ones who can free Rey from Palpatine.”  
A question mark seemed to appear above Finn’s head.  
Before he could ask another question, Leia answered it for him. “You’re strong with the Force. I feel it.”  
“But I know nothing of the Force!” Finn argued.  
“That’s why I’m going to teach you.” Leia moved her attention away from Ben and Finn and focused it on Temiri instead. “As for you, Temiri, Ben and Finn may need you.”  
“If training will help us save Rey, then I’m down for it.” Temiri said.  
Leia gave him a gentle smile. “You have the spirit of a Jedi. Well then, let’s get started, shall we?”  
Leia started with a basic exercise. Lifting rocks. She gathered some rocks on the beach and put them together in a pile. Then, she pulled the three Force-sensitive youths behind her arm so she could demonstrate. Leia held her hand in front of her. One by one, the rocks lifted into the air and created a ring. The sight was breathtaking.  
Finn couldn’t help but to say, “Wow.”  
Temiri was the first one to try the exercise. He passed it with flying colors. The rocks created their ring and seemed to stare at him. Like Leia, they too were impressed.  
Ben Solo had a little bit of trouble. This was because he was used to using Dark Side energy, not Light. Unfortunately for him, the rocks did not create a ring. Instead, they flew all over the place.  
Leia, Temiri, Finn, and Ben ducked under them. The least they wanted was to wind up in a bacta tub so close to the final battle.  
Nervous, Ben glanced at Leia. He knew she was disappointed in him. He felt it.  
Finally, Finn tried the exercise, but he could feel nothing. No power surged through his body. He still felt like the same old Finn.  
“You need to have confidence.” Leia told him. “You know you can do this.”  
Inhaling a breath of air, Finn tried again. He cleared his head, thinking about nothing but the rocks. He tried to feel the Force, yet, nothing happened. What a waste of time. If he couldn’t lift one rock, then how could he expect to save Rey? Finn was certain that Palpatine had already won. Without Rey, there was no hope that the Resistance would beat him.

***

“‘Rey, be brave.’” The voice of Rey’s mother woke her up. Due to Palpatine’s punishment, she was extremely weakened and a little bit disoriented, but she stayed strong. To be part of the Dark Side was not the end of the world. There was still hope. She knew there was. The young woman ignored her grandfather’s angry yells in her head and struggled to her hands and knees. She barely used her injured arm. Rey thought it was getting better, but it wasn’t. Palpatine wasn’t the only one stripping her of her life energy. So was her injury.  
Rey was still in the Sith Tunnel. Surrounding her and hidden in the shadows were all the gates and cages she caught a glimpse of before she fell unconscious. Inside them were members of the First Order, as well as prisoners they picked up from different planets in the galaxy. Palpatine captured the generals, mechanics, clones, stormtroopers, etc. Thank goodness Finn wasn’t on _The Limpton_ when this happened.  
For the first time ever, Rey noticed that the First Order prisoners looked frightened. They did not want to join Palpatine, yet he was trying to force them. Rey wanted to help, but at the same time, the Dark Side of the Force told her not to. She fought her feelings and stared into her enemies’ faces. She could feel it. The Light Side of the Force. It was interfering with her Dark Side self. Frustrated, the young woman gripped either side of her head and yelled. She had no idea what to do. What _could_ she do?

***

Temiri, Ben, and Finn felt Rey’s struggle. Ben and Finn were most affected by it. Rey’s aura was getting weaker, meaning that she was dying faster than they thought she was. It turned out that the injury the Beacerika gave her on Dark Side Island was fatal. This realization caused them to literally collapse to their knees. Both Ben and Finn gasped. It looked like they were having trouble breathing.  
“What do you feel?” Leia wanted to know.  
“Rey. Her injury –” Finn could not bring himself to finish his sentence. Therefore, Kylo Ren had to help him.  
“It’s fatal.”  
“We need to go to her.” Finn struggled to his feet. He started to make his way back in the direction of the Resistance Base, but Leia whacked his chest with her cane.  
“We can’t. You’re not ready.”  
“But –” Finn argued.  
“For now, she is perfectly fine.” Leia said. “As long as we keep training, you’ll be able to save her.”  
“She wants to turn back to the Light Side.” Ben explained.  
“And she will do just that,” said Leia. “After all, Rey is neither good nor bad. She walks the line between the Light and Dark Sides of the Force.”  
Off to the side, Temiri mumbled under his breath. “I thought so.” The whole time he was with Rey on Phonolukamy, he noticed this. Rey was no ordinary Jedi. She was a Grey Jedi. Both the Jedi and the Sith lived within her.  
“Rey’s powers are unbalanced, but that’s just because she is special.” Leia explained to Ben and Finn. “She does not know the true extent of it.”  
Finn took a deep breath. If that was the case, then he had to train extra hard. He narrowed his eyebrows and focused his attention on the pile of rocks. “Please, Rey, you need to fight it,” he begged. “Hang on just a little bit longer. I’m not going to let you die.”  
Amazingly, Rey received his message, and she communicated back to him. _“It’s okay, Finn. I knew I was flying to my death even before I left Supher.”_  
_“You can’t give up!”_ Finn shouted in his head. _“We’re going to save you!”_ His desperation to help his friend triggered his Force abilities. Suddenly, Finn felt a surge of energy in his body. “I feel it,” he whispered to himself. He cleared his mind from Rey and just thought about the rocks.  
Ben, Leia, and Temiri watched him. Their mouths literally dropped when one by one; the rocks floated up from the pile. Instead of making one circle, they broke up and created two.  
A grin stretched across Leia’s face. “Finn! You’re doing it!” She clapped her hands together.  
“Incredible.” Ben added. He always felt that Finn was Force-sensitive, but he never realized just _how_ Force-sensitive he was.  
Finn rose to his feet. Like Leia, he held his hand out to the rocks. They danced on the nighttime air currents and kept on creating circles. It looked as if the stars had fallen and landed on Palm Tree Beach. The sight was marvelous. If only Rey could see what was happening right now.

***

She couldn’t. She was still contemplating whether or not she should free the First Order. She fought Palpatine to the best of her abilities. He punished and punished her, but she pulled through. Both Light and Dark memories flew through her brain: meeting Finn, learning under Luke, and Han Solo’s death. It was like what happened on Supher all over again, when the Beacerika pulled her into both Light and Dark situations. There was a reason why it snuffed her out on Dark Side Island. She just had to figure out what that reason was. Why did the Beacerika give her a fatal injury? Did it want to hurt her, or was this all part of its plan to have Rey find her place in the galaxy? There were so many questions, but many were unanswered.  
Rey paced back and forth in front of the cages. She rubbed sweat from her forehead as she tried to make up her mind.  
A young First Order stormtrooper begged for her to help. “Please. We want Palpatine dead just as much as you.” Even though she couldn’t see his face, Rey knew he was serious. Yelping, she clutched her head with both hands. She may have been Palpatine’s granddaughter, but she wasn’t like him. Palpatine was Palpatine. Rey was _Rey_. She was never an official part of the Dark Side. That’s why she felt so conflicted being here.

***

Leia tried a lightsaber exercise with Temiri, Ben, and Finn. She grabbed two more lightsabers from the Resistance Base and gave them to Finn and Temiri, while Rey’s lightsaber went to Ben. By now, Supher’s moons were high in the sky. They were full tonight. Palm Tree Beach, which was closest to the base, was the best place to try the exercise.  
Ben, Finn, and Temiri stood in a line.  
Leia asked Rose to help her. They both brought out a blaster, and they shot them at the Force-sensitive youths. The blasters were dumbed down, so they wouldn’t technically hurt if either Ben, Finn, or Temiri missed a parry. It would just be a little pinch. The Resistance used blasters like these when training their soldiers. Temiri succeeded in not only parrying a bolt, but also knocking down a tree. Ben momentarily gave in to his hate and anger. With each blaster bolt, he yelled and knocked it back.  
Leia shouted at him. “Feel the Light coursing through you, Ben! If I can feel it, so can you!”  
Since Finn’s never really handled a lightsaber before, he at first really struggled with the exercise. The sight of the blaster bolts scared him, and he dodged them.  
Leia threw a tip at him. “Don’t give in to fear. Fear is a path to the Dark Side.” How could Finn not be scared? His best friend was literally _dying_ as he was doing this.  
Rey’s aura continued to flush through his and Ben’s bodies. It was still weak, but it hadn’t gotten weaker. She was holding on the best she could.  
_“Please, Rey.”_ Ben begged. He took a deep breath and calmed himself down. This allowed him to parry a few blaster bolts without losing himself to his anger.  
Finn could hear Ben’s message in his own head. It was strange. Both he and the ex-Sith were working together to communicate with Rey. This helped him realize something. If there was any hope to win this war, then the Resistance had to use teamwork. They needed to turn their greatest foes into allies.

***

Just as Ben was now an ally of the Resistance, so were the imprisoned First Order members.  
“Stop it! Stop it!” Rey shouted. She couldn’t take all this stress. She wanted to listen to her friends, but at the same time, she didn’t want to disobey her grandfather.  
It didn’t get any better when the First Order prisoners stuck their hands through the bars of their cages and gates and begged her to help them.  
_“Teamwork. Teamwork.”_ Rey heard Ben say in her head. _“We need to use teamwork.”_  
“Teamwork.” Rey repeated in a groggy voice. She felt the Light Side of the Force overlapping with the Dark Side. Her Grey Jedi instincts kicked in, and she made up her mind. Rey ignited her red lightsaber, _buzz_, and ran it through the cages and gates. She freed the First Order, but she was getting weaker by the second. Her arm. It was starting to take its toll on her. By the time she finished slashing the last of the cages and gates, she was so out of breath that she fell against the prison’s wall. Her clothes were drenched in sweat. Her life was fading before her eyes.  
“Rey!” yelled the young First Order stormtrooper who said he wanted Palpatine dead just as much as her. He picked her up in his arms, causing her lightsaber to shut off and fall from her hand.  
Palpatine, or better said, Palpatine’s _spirit_ was not impressed. His own granddaughter turned against him. She was both a Sith and a Jedi. He was not going to let her win. If he could possess General Hux, then there was no way he could use that same method on the young stormtrooper. He intended to do just that. The Resistance could try all they wanted, but they were not going to win. The final battle was just around the corner, and Palpatine could not wait to get started.

***

Finn, Temiri, and Ben trained for the rest of the night. Leia taught them a few fighting moves of her own, and they mimicked her. Finn and Temiri were getting better at using a lightsaber, and Ben was getting used to the Light Side again. By the end of the night, they were in perfect synch with each other. They lunged at the same time, jumped at the same time, and dodged the blaster bolts at the same time. Leia also taught them how to use the Force in order to pass one lightsaber off to another person, just in case something happened and two lightsabers went missing, or were destroyed.  
Rose fell asleep with her back propped up against a coconut palm.  
Leia borrowed her blaster, so now she carried two. For the last exercise, she shot both blasters at the same time.  
Finn and Ben kept their eyes glued to the bolts. Ben nodded at Finn, telling him that now was the time to parry. Together, they lifted their lightsabers, and the blaster bolts crashed into them.  
“Well done! That was excellent!” Leia clapped her hands together.  
Ben and Finn thanked her. They shut off their lightsabers.  
Temiri was the last guinea pig of the lesson. Leia fired her blasters. Temiri waited until the bolts were an inch away from him before he blocked them. Ben communicated with him through the Force and told him that was the best time for the parry.  
Laughing, Leia said, “Excellent! You three used teamwork, and that’s why you won. I think it’s safe to say that you’re finally ready for battle.”  
Temiri also shut off his lightsaber. He smiled at Ben and Finn, and they returned it.  
Just before the youths could head inside to the base and grab something to eat, a very anxious Poe suddenly sprinted out of it. “General!” he yelled. He hurried to Leia. His boots kicked up sand, and it flew into Rose’s mouth.  
Snapping awake, she shouted, “Yuck!” She moved her head back and forth at a quick pace. “What happened?!”  
“What’s wrong, Poe?” Leia asked the pilot.  
Poe stopped in front of her, out of breath. He placed his hands on his knees, saying, “Bad news! _The Limpton_ has entered Supher’s atmosphere! We’re under attack!”  
Ben, Temiri, Finn, Rose, and Leia looked up to the newborn day. Sure enough, there was _The Limpton_. It had not yet reached Supher’s surface, but it was getting close.  
At the sight of it, Leia nodded. “Then it is time.” She glanced at Ben, Temiri, and Finn out the corners of her eye. “The final battle has begun.”


End file.
